Observers have expressed concern that Chinese mining  companies operating  in Latin America are violating  labor and environmental standards to a greater extent than other foreign mining companies. Critics point to one operation in particular  –Shougang Hierro  Peru– as evidence of China’s threat to Latin America’s workers and environment. Indeed, Shougang has experienced a far higher rate of strikes than other foreign firms. Many observers have assumed that Shougang’s strike problem stems from an inevitable culture clash between Peruvian unions and Chinese management. In fact, union relations remained positive for years, until Shougang lost funding when its parent company suffered a crisis back in China in 1995. I argue that the strike problem stems largely from Shougang’s response to its 1995 funding crisis: it burnt its bridges with the unions to save money. S...