novelraw Chapter 812 Whose worker is it, who pays them?
Chapter 812 Whose worker is it, who pays them?
Chapter 812 Whose worker is it, who pays them?
Lu Qiaoge chuckled and said, "Oh dear, I'm just lucky to be able to help Leader Xu. I was just in the right place at the right time."
Leader Xu looked intently at Lu Qiaoge and asked, "Little Lu, what's your second matter?"
Lu Qiaoge didn't keep anyone in suspense and directly stated her idea: find a poorly managed textile factory and convert it into a sweater factory.
Leader Xu's eyes lit up immediately.
There are several textile factories in Jiangcheng.
This year's textile factories are not like those of previous years. Production tasks are mostly distributed among lower-level factories, and many textile factories have outdated machinery and equipment.
Without production targets, the products produced can only be sold internally. As a result, the factory incurs various maintenance costs, upkeep expenses, and employee salaries. It's fair to say that every aspect of life—from food and drink to sleeping—is subject to demands for money.
Sometimes he didn't even dare to go to the factories below to inspect them.
Every time I go to the factories down there, it's like seeing a flock of lambs waiting to be fed.
More than 20 years have passed since the founding of the People's Republic of China, and many of the older workers have retired.
However, now the retirement of workers in state-owned enterprises is the responsibility of their respective work units, meaning that whoever owns the workers is responsible for their retirement.
Just like the second textile factory.
The Second Textile Factory was opened because the First Textile Factory was facing a tight production schedule, followed by the Third Textile Factory.
Today, the Third Textile Factory has successfully transformed itself, and its down jackets are in high demand.
The First Textile Factory, being a large and established factory, was the primary source of production tasks.
The leaders have also held a meeting, and the idea is either to merge or to think of other solutions. It is said that the Second Textile Factory is spending a lot of money just on expenses for retirees. Everyone says that it is paid from non-operating income, but there are no production tasks, so where does the income come from?
Leader Xu stared intently at Lu Qiaoge, as if trying to see a flower bloom on her face: "So what do you think of the Second Textile Factory?"
Lu Qiaoge paused in peeling sunflower seeds, hesitated for a moment, and twirled a seed between her fingertips before putting it in her mouth: "The factory is a bit too big. My initial idea was to find a small, county-level textile factory. Not limited to Jiangcheng, we could go north, where it's closer to the raw material production areas."
After listening, Leader Xu picked up the phone without saying a word: "I'll call Lao Zhou and the others." After a pause, he asked Lu Qiaoge with a smile, "Did you go to his place?"
Lu Qiaoge smiled and said, "Then of course I'll come to see you, Leader Xu, first. How could I go somewhere else first?"
Leader Xu was amused by her. He tapped his finger lightly, and his smile deepened. Then he made another phone call and summoned Lao Zhou and Director Zhao, who was in charge of the textile factory.
Lu Qiaoge ate sunflower seeds while waiting and chatted with Leader Xu.
Lu Qiaoge didn't hide anything and told Leader Xu everything she could.
For example, the Fourth and Fifth Divisions of the State Administration of Foreign Trade were dissolved. The newly established Ministry of Foreign Trade Development also mentioned the embroidery factory, and of course, pickled radishes.
Leader Xu also knew a little about it, but after all, he was at the bottom, and he only knew about many things from what others told him or from phone calls.
But hearing Lu Qiaoge, who experienced it firsthand, was even more direct and shocking.
Leader Xu looked at Lu Qiaoge and said to her in a very friendly tone, "You really are a restless girl."
He naturally knew that the girl was also subtly telling him some news from the Northern Capital.
That's why people say it's easier to get a government position if you have connections in the central government.
The ancients were right!
Leader Xu and Lu Qiaoge spoke even more warmly to each other.
Because Lu Qiaoge was having such a lively conversation, Leader Xu didn't even realize that almost an hour had passed.
The door opened, and Old Zhou went in first. As soon as he saw Lu Qiaoge, he smiled and said, "I've been waiting for you to come, but I think the matter of the 516 military factory alone will keep you busy for several days."
Lu Qiaoge laughed and said, "That's right. I've been busy for two or three days, so I quickly took some time to come and visit Leader Xu and talk to him about something."
At this moment, Director Zhao also stepped into the room.
He and Lu Qiaoge went from being strangers to becoming acquainted through the renovation of the down jacket factory, and eventually got along very well.
Upon hearing Lu Qiaoge's idea, he immediately made the decision, even saying in one breath, "The Second Textile Factory it is! If we're going to renovate it, let's do it all at once and start with the Second Textile Factory!"
Lu Qiaoge couldn't help but chuckle: "Director Zhao, the Second Textile Factory is too large. If this restructuring isn't done well, it could cause big problems."
"Comrade Lu, I trust you." Director Zhao's tone was resolute: "If you weren't confident, would you have come to us for advice?"
Lu Qiaoge did indeed come to Leader Xu's office after receiving a call from Director Lü.
Because there is a down jacket factory whose experience can be learned from, this renovation does not need to go through layers of approval as long as the local leaders agree.
The State Administration of Foreign Trade does not have the authority to direct local governments to establish various factories.
But Lu Qiaoge is different; she wants to export directly through this method.
Foreign exchange is the most important thing right now, so let's exchange for foreign currency.
Only when they can see the benefits more directly can the factory operate smoothly.
Director Bai and Director Li are in charge of the overall direction.
If you're going to school locally, and the local leaders agree and strongly support it, then there shouldn't be any problems.
But Lu Qiaoge really didn't want to use such a large factory as a pilot project.
Director Zhao glanced at Lu Qiaoge and began to complain: "You don't know, the Second Textile Factory is almost unable to pay the retired workers' wages. Those old workers, aren't they all long-serving? It's fine if they don't get paid for a month, but if they don't get paid for two months in a row, they'll definitely make a fuss and demand an explanation from higher authorities!"
Lu Qiaoge was somewhat surprised: "No matter what, it's the second-largest factory, doesn't it have any production tasks at all?"
Old Zhou sighed and chimed in, "Yes, there are. They're all leftover scrap orders that nobody wants. Even if we finish them, it won't cover the electricity bill. There are over two thousand people in the factory, but most of them are idle. The machines are just sitting there rusting. On the other hand, there's a huge list of retired workers, which is suffocating. Manager Xu, you tell me, this isn't a factory, it's a bottomless pit."
But now he had the chance, and he was determined to explain the situation to Leader Xu.
Even a skilled cook can't cook without rice!
With raw material shortages, this factory is really going to go bankrupt if things continue like this.
But he didn't really understand why the production target had been reduced so much all of a sudden this year.
Everything was fine last year.
Many people believe that work is basically unchanging: go to work, get off work, and then retire.
The factory has its own primary school, its own bathhouse, and its own shop.
The apartment was allocated by my work unit.
In some places, the electricity bill is paid by the employer.
Otherwise, why would so many people want to become workers?
It's because state-owned factories offer good benefits.
This is what is known as an "iron rice bowl" – a job that guarantees income regardless of drought or flood.
(End of this chapter)