Mexico factory group defies flu shutdown

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A major Mexican factory association said on Thursday that plants will operate May 1-5 despite a government call for a shutdown of swaths of the economy during the period to stem a deadly flu outbreak.

"We are going to work during the long weekend," said Cesar Castro, head of the national maquiladora council, whose members assemble goods like refrigerators and radios for export and are concentrated on the U.S. border.

Mexico began shutting down parts of its economy on Thursday to slow the spread of swine flu that has killed up to 176 people in Mexico.

The government late on Wednesday urged all non-essential businesses to close between Friday May 1 and Monday May 5.

But Castro said maquiladoras, which are usually foreign owned and are one of the pillars of Mexico's manufacturing sector, need to stay open or companies and employees will suffer too much.

"We have commitments that we have to meet and if we don't meet them, the cure will end up being worse than the disease," he said in a conference call with journalists.

Mexico reported late last week that a never-before-seen H1N1 flu virus -- with elements of swine, avian and human varieties -- was spreading rapidly through the country.

Castro said maquiladoras were being called by their headquarters which want to know if production needs to be shifted to other countries.

"Right now we are getting pressured by corporate (offices)," he said.

Castro said some employees would be working from home and extra precautions were being taken in factories to ward off the virus.

Around the world flu preparations were intensified after the World Health Organization raised its alert level to phase 5, the last step before a pandemic.

(Editing by Sandra Maler)