Labour Control in Production Process

Driven by the goal of the maximisation of profit, labour control over the production process has been tightened through the imported modem management methods and techniques. Following the application of the management techniques, speed-up has also been widely used.

Evidence provided by workers, as well as managers, consistently leads to the conclusion that the speed o f the machinery has been increased. The German headquarters requires the factories in the different countries to have the same productivity. In order to achieve this target, the speed o f assembly lines has

continuously been increased. The old assembly lines o f the SOEs have been sold and advanced machines imported from western countries. The director o f the Dept, of Production said: “The new machines really help the workers to achieve higher productivity. They accordingly have to work hard to keep up with the tempo.”

The speed-up began with the joint venture. The interviews in 2001 indicated that 63 and 65 per cent o f workers considered the workload and stress to have increased compared with the SOE period. The workers also expressed the view that the speed­

up was reasonable, due to the low productivity in the SOE period. However, things have changed since early 2003: the workers, team leaders and the directors o f the workshops have begun to worry about the continuous increases in speed.

The speed-up has gone hand-in-hand with a reduction in the number o f workers on production lines. After re-determining the work rate and the workload of posts, some posts have been merged or abolished, which means that some workers’ workloads have doubled. Almost all of the workers and team heads I interviewed reported that it is difficult to keep up and they are worn out. The complaints from the assembly line were most pronounced.

A temporary worker complained:

I have worked in this post for 4 years. Honestly, I feel nervous almost every day when I enter the factory gate. Every day I am worried about whether I can keep up.

Initially, there were two workers working in my post. One moved the doors o f

merged into one. I have to do two workers’ work. Every day, I move more than 300 doors and install the sealing strips. Horrible! Sometimes, I have seen the white doors coming to me from the conveyor belt as white ocean waves in front of me. Eleven hours per day is such a long time. I always feel that the work is unbearable.

Such suffering exists in a context that it is important not to forget, however. As the same worker continued:

My wife is an assistant in a store. She often complains of how tired she is.

Currently, she never complains in front o f me. She knows the real meaning o f

‘tired’ when she sees me. When I am at home, I am so exhausted that I have no energy to chat, to watch TV. The only thing I want to do is to go to bed immediately. I am 32 years old. As a male, it is the time when I should be full of energy. However, I feel I have aged a lot.

You might not understand, but even under this heavy workload, I am still happy that I will become a contract worker next year. I don’t want to look for another job. Currently, all the factories are owned by private owners. The capitalists are the same.

When I prepared to end the interview, he asked me if I could interview him for another 10 minutes. His team leader had allowed him to leave for 1 hour and 20 minutes: there were 10 minutes left. He explained:

The team leader set a worker to replace me in my post for one hour and 20 minutes. It is relaxing to talk with you. I can take a seat and have a cup o f tea. I would like to enjoy the time. Please do not look down upon me. I am not lazy, I am just so tired.

Most o f the workers I interviewed in 2004, shared this worker’s feelings. Due to the sensitivity o f the topic, I have failed to obtain hard information on how much the quota has been increased. The interviews provided by Chinese managers and workers lead to the conclusion that the quota increase has been considerable. The labour affect their own income, but also that of the other workers in the production team. In order to finish their tasks, some workers have to work in their breaks. During the busy season, the working time is 11 hours with only a one hour break. Sometimes, the workers have to work for 11 hours without stopping to finish their quotas. All o f the Chinese managers and the officials o f the trade union I interviewed were worried about the continuous speed-up and quota increases. ‘I am an employee o f the foreign capitalists. I have to fulfil my responsibility, but the workers are very ‘unhappy’, said a Workshop Head:

Since the company shifted to being a wholly foreign company, the boss puts profits first and puts stress on us to promote production. I understand that their target is to make the highest profit. But there should be a sensible limit. In 2004, the production plan required that the output should increase by 13 per cent compared to 2003. It was very difficult to reach the aim. Many workers considered that we had reached the top and that it is impossible to improve any more. A few days ago, I was shocked by the production plan for 2005. The

output has increased again. I was a worker. I sympathize with my workmates.

But I have no way to reduce the quota. Between the foreign capitalists and my work fellows, I am always in conflict.

Even worse, the majority of the workers did not dare to complain about the speed-up and the quota increases, as they were worried that too many complaints would offend the managers and threaten their job security. The General Manager I interviewed said that he did not know about the workers’ complaints. Moreover, he was still not satisfied with productivity. From his viewpoint, there was still room to improve the productivity of ChinaCol. Compared with other companies in other countries in which the German company has invested, the productivity of ChinaCol is the lowest.

“It is evidence that the Chinese workers need more pressure”, he concluded.