A few years after it was put into production in April 2016, the Fuyao American Plant (FGA) still failed to achieve profitability. The US representative visited the Fuqing headquarters to visit the process and operations, hoping to find a solution to the continuous loss of production capacity. What was shown to them was a moment of rest. The assembly line, the silent and efficient workers, and therefore the daily output of up to 7,000 pieces.
Americans are a little at a loss when facing these unfamiliar scenes. They don’t understand the wolfish culture of private enterprises contained in the tidy slogan, nor can they understand why Chinese workers don’t wear safety goggles and cut-proof gloves and squat in the waste dump. Damn glass", and Chinese management, including Cao Dewang, are also very confused. "You only work 8 hours a day off 2 days a week. Why are you going to strike?" "How can we make Americans understand and accept that we are here? invest".
There are very few documentaries about Chinese factories. Maybe they are unwilling to show this more real and cruel part to the world too much, and I am very familiar with the missing part. The work experience in the past few years has allowed me not only to see the daily work content of workers, but also to know the operation process and management thinking of a large glass factory in China.
I want to briefly introduce this part that I am familiar with, so that it can be referred to by friends watching the movie.
【】About hourly wages and working hours
The quality inspector of the US factory mentioned that the hourly salary in General Motors was US$29 and in Fuyao it was US$12.84. Work 8 hours a day, weekends, 8 days off each month.
In domestic factories, workers earn 14-19 RMB per hour. 8 in the morning and 8 in the evening, working 12 hours a day, 14 days off, and two days off each month.
【】About overtime
At a meeting to discuss how to better manage Americans, the Chinese management asked, "Can they be forced to work overtime? Anyway, it is mandatory over there (in the country)." Americans? work overtime? The participants couldn't help laughing.
In China, the labor law also provides for an 8-hour work schedule, but workers do not even need to be forced to work for 12 hours voluntarily. Because 4 hours of overtime work outside of 8 hours is 1.5 times the salary, and extra overtime work outside of 8 hours on weekends is 2 times the salary. This also leads to a very magical phenomenon. In American factories, management cannot require employees to work overtime. In China, overtime is sometimes more like a right than an obligation. If you offend management, you don’t even have the right to work overtime. The monthly salary is only one-third of that of colleagues, which is not enough to support the family.
【】About working environment
The Chinese management complained that the employees of the US factory were chatting and chatting all day long. Domestic factories are strictly monitored and are not allowed to bring mobile phones into the factory. Except for a few types of work such as quality inspection and packaging, there are stools to sit on. Other positions stand in front of the machine for 12 hours a day to operate, except for lunch, where you can rest and walk for an hour.
【】About leave
An American employee complained that a friend was fired because of sick leave for more than one week. She worried that she would do the same. There is absolutely no need for such troubles in China, because general workers simply cannot take such long sick leave. The process of asking for leave is the same as the resignation process. It needs to be reviewed and approved by the team leader-monitor-supervisor-manager-director-personnel department. When the construction period is not busy, you can ask for one or two days. Can't delay. You can also choose to resign, but the same will not be approved. At this time, you can only resign, and resignation means giving up your salary for the month, and there is no other way.
【】About the strike
In the film, the Chinese management calmly said that he had eyes and ears below (workshop) and was very familiar with a certain employee, and then fired him backhand. This scene surprised many people with human malice. Fuyao's handling of labor union-assisted strikes in the United States is obviously a bit inexperienced, but these Chinese factories already have a mature process for responding to local strikes. I have witnessed several strikes, because the working hours are too long and the pay is not satisfied. Let them elect a representative to speak out, and then have a few interviews, promising to improve their treatment. After the situation subsided, all the leading employees were transferred to their posts and then found reasons to be dismissed. After the leader was sent, the rest was nothing to be afraid of.
Chairman Cao asked if the union has been silent recently.
The answer is: We have targeted a lot of people from the trade unions, and the measures we have taken are still very effective.
Cao: Later, we will recruit excellent people, young ones, to cultivate such a culture and consolidate the situation.
As long as you come back to your senses, this domestic set can be transplanted to appease—interview—improve treatment—dismiss thorns—recruit new recruits—consolidate the situation, start over, and have no trace of water.
【】About the robotic arm
The introduction of the robotic arm can greatly save labor in the processes of cutting, cutting, grinding, ultrasonic cleaning, etc., but the loading, reclaiming, placing, packaging, etc. are still inseparable from the workers, and the conflict between workers' rights and capital is not temporarily It will be solved with automation.
When I watched the film, I thought more than once that Fuyao’s investment this time was too unwise. In the United States, they not only suffered years of losses but also caused countless criticisms. If they were to invest in underdeveloped areas in the interior, perhaps the same investment could double the output. out. The Chinese are harder and harder, and it is easier to be grateful to the boss because of a small salary increase. Your approach is not feasible in the United States. Come back soon.
But more than half of the movie, the strike was dealt with, and 868 votes against the union's entry into the American factory, only to discover that this system was originally feasible in the United States. Whether Chinese workers or American workers, whether the hourly wage is US$12.84 or RMB 19, if you are laid off, there will be nothing. Everyone knows that this is exploitation, but I allow you/look forward to your exploitation. For the sake of their jobs, Chinese workers have been patient, and now American workers are beginning to compromise. In the face of capital, there is actually no difference.
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