More than 1,000 workers have gone on strike at an IBM factory in southern China, in objection to the terms of their transfer to Lenovo as part of its $2.3bn acquisition of the US technology giant’s x86 server business.

Chinese workers are challenging multi-billion dollar deals involving their employers with increasing frequency, injecting a new element of risk into large cross-border mergers and acquisitions.

One worker, who asked not to be identified, said that protests began on Monday and production remained suspended at the IBM manufacturing facility in Shenzhen, the industrial centre bordering Hong Kong. The factory will be taken over by Lenovo as part of the Chinese company’s planned purchase of IBM’s low-end server business, announced in January.