A Chinese labor dispute arbitration committee has received a claim from 155 former Beijing employees of Siemens China who are seeking CNY1.2 million in unpaid year-end bonuses.

According to local media, Siemens China terminated the employment contracts of 700 staff after selling its mobile business to BenQ in 2005. After termination, the staff received about 33% less bonus than promised in their contracts.

After receiving the meager bonuses, Siemens management said that because the employees only completed 67% of their 2005 work targets, they were only allowed 67% of their year-end bonus.

However, former Siemens staff say that the company never announced a work target for 2005. According to Chinese labor laws, it is the responsibility of the company to set clear work goals when paired with bonuses.

A lawyer for the group of disgruntled employees say that the claim is more for fairness than for the cash. A decision should be reached in the coming weeks.