Wal-Mart China management restructuring hits stumbling block

Beijing Wal-Mart Stores’ plans to restructure its Chinese work force ran into a snag, the company said Tuesday. Plans to eliminate jobs at its China unit met with resistance from the up to 1,400 workers involved.

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, objections were launched by China's powerful state-backed trade union, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions.

Wal-Mart's restructuring move, announced last week, pares a level of management, affecting 2.5% of its employees, who are being asked to relocate to other store outlets, or face pay cuts.

The move angered local union leaders, who are asking Wal-Mart to hold off implementing the plan. They are also requesting meetings between trade-union officials and Wal-Mart representatives.

Wal-Mart has 147 outlets in China and employs over 50,000.