Taiwanese group Wintek, formerly a major supplier of touchscreens for Apple’s iPhone and iPad, has shuttered two plants in southern China and axed 7,000 jobs, leaving unpaid suppliers to chase debts of Rmb230m ($37m).
Armed police surrounded the plants in the city of Dongguan as workers collected final pay this week, while suppliers demonstrated in front of the factories. Wintek declined to comment.
The company sought insolvency protection in October, filing in Taiwan for a restructuring of more than NT30bn ($961m) in debts owed to local and mainland lenders and suppliers. Wintek reported a loss of NT$10bn for 2013 and a NT$3bn loss in the first half this year. The Taipei-listed company was once one of the main suppliers for Apple, but placed a bet that failed after Apple selected a rival touchscreen in late 2012.