Huawei Technologies said it will hand out 2 billion yuan or $286 million in cash rewards to staff working to help it weather a U.S. trade blacklisting, Reuters reported.
The world’s largest telecoms equipment supplier and the second largest smartphone maker earlier said it has been trying to find alternatives to U.S. hardware after the United States all but banned it in May from doing business with American firms, disrupting its ability to source key parts.
The cash is a mark of recognition for work in the face of U.S. pressure, Huawei’s human resources department said in a notice to staff. It will also double pay this month for almost all its 190,000 workers, a company spokesman said.
The cash rewards will likely go to research and development teams and those working to shift the company’s supply chains away from the United States.
Many in the U.S. government believe that Huawei’s equipment, particularly its 5G networks, pose a security risk, because of the company’s close ties to the Chinese government. Huawei has denied the Chinese government plays any role in its operations.
Although granted reprieves from much of the U.S. exclusion, Huawei had been working to find alternatives after it witnessed the crippling effect of U.S. sanctions on its smaller Chinese rival ZTE in early 2017.
