Warhammer 40K in a box

Chapter 178 Improving the Living Conditions of Workers

Chen Xi silently watched the immigrants huddled in the shadows of the temporary airport loading and unloading platform. Their rough and simple clothes rustled in the airflow raised by the shuttle, and countless pairs of dodging eyes were trying to avoid the judge's sight.

Their awe and even fear condensed into a kind of visible mist, slowly settling in the air filled with the smell of metallic rust. This collective stress response had long been integrated into the survival instinct of the people of the empire.

He is the Inquisitor, after all, and he represents the Inquisition.

Those terrifying nursery rhymes circulating in the lower levels of the hive, those real events distorted thousands of times by the warp storms - the reputation of the Inquisition has long engraved a conditioned reflex of shuddering in the genes of the human empire.

Although the citizens of the Empire may not be able to accurately distinguish between the Anti-foreign Order and the Anti-rebellion Order, thanks to those insane colleagues, the reputation of the Inquisition in the Empire is absolutely comparable to the Big Bad Wolf in the various fairy tales that Chen Xi heard as a child in the 3K era.

'If you don't obey, the big bad wolf will come and eat you' - this primitive threat found a perfect substitute within the territory of the empire.

'If you don't obey, the Inquisitor will come to arrest you' - when this warning sounded, even the most ferocious gang leader would turn pale in an instant.

In the Empire, the appearance of an Inquisitor usually means that a certain ecosystem is about to undergo a complete reconstruction, which is often accompanied by systematic population reduction and physical purification operations.

It's never just a neighborhood dispute that's enough to alarm the Inquisitor to intervene personally. Behind those red alerts are often shadows that are enough to plunge the entire star region into chaos and corruption.

However, Chen Xi, who was standing at the Zaporizhia No. 3 landing port at this moment, was not here to cause killing.

This is a mining planet under his management. These immigrants are valuable labor and population. He will not waste them easily unless there is a real problem.

And most importantly, the Mechanicus who manages this mining planet will not easily allow him to waste precious human resources.

Yes, Zaporizhia is actually governed by the Mechanicum.

There is no way around it. After all, this planet is a mining planet. If you want efficient mining, you need the Mechanicus to provide mining equipment, and then hand it over to these mechanics to manage. Naturally, they will pursue the most efficient management method.

When these oil men took over the management of the planet, all production processes were deconstructed into cold mathematical models.

In the thought circuits of these mechanical priests, human workers are nothing more than mining parts that can repair themselves.

Even though that might be very... inhumane.

But being humane in the Empire?
Oh, my God-Emperor, when did the Empire ever talk about this?

In 40k, speaking of humanity, you are already rare enough to be able to book a showroom for yourself in Solomons.

So even though Chen Xi hopes to treat his people as well as possible, there is not much he can change.

Yes, the eight-hour work system, paying workers wages commensurate with the value of their labor, providing adequate labor protection, etc., all sounded natural in the 3k era.

But in the 40k era, if you do this, you usually have to face two problems. The first is the surge in employment costs, which will indirectly lead to your inability to pay taxes.

In the Empire, the only things that cannot be avoided are death and taxes.

If you can't pay the tithe, forget about anything else. Think about how to deal with the Ministry of the Interior's punitive fleet first. As for your second question, a certain blue-haired birdman in the Warp is laughing happily. Are you sure you weren't influenced by him?

Even if the blue-haired birdman didn't cause any trouble, are you sure that a certain green fat guy and purple pervert didn't cause any trouble?

Chen Xi could not answer these questions.

Although it sounds very discouraging, in the 40k era, all he can do is to make his people live a little better to a limited extent.

For example, he is currently negotiating with the Mechanicus priests of the Mechanicus, demanding that they not transform all the workers sent to them into mechanical servants, and that they provide them with relatively comfortable living environments.

"No. Providing workers with a better living environment will increase labor costs and will not significantly improve labor efficiency. This is a waste." The oil men are all picky guys who fart and lick their fingers. Obviously, in their view, improving workers' treatment is like throwing money into the fire.

However, Chen Xi shook his head and said to the Mechanical Priest in front of him, "This is not a discussion, but an order! I am the Governor and the Lord Inquisitor! This is my planet!
I ask you to provide workers with healthy living conditions, clean drinking water and food, and adequate medical care.

Although these things cannot improve their labor efficiency, they can extend their service life.

I don't quite understand your calculations, but in my opinion, it's much more cost-effective to let a skilled worker live to 60 and work for 20 more years than to let him only live to 40 in order to save a little production cost."

Hearing Chen Xi's words, the Mechanical Priest was not angry. Instead, his artificial eyes flashed as he analyzed what Chen Xi said and recalculated the data.

Chen Xi knew they were recalculating the variables—treating workers as depreciable assets rather than consumables.

Ultimately, he came up with a new data model and conclusion.

"After calculation, reasonably extending the service life of workers can increase production capacity to a certain extent in the long run. Your request can be approved, but we will adjust the level of treatment provided to them based on actual conditions." The oil man agreed to Chen Xi's request, although only partially.

But this is already very satisfactory for Chen Xi. You know, when working for the Mechanicus, these oil men will really make sure the workers are well fed and well-watered, and ensure their health to maintain work efficiency.

Although the oil men are very stingy, which is no different from slaves if you belong to a mechanical priest, at least they won't work you to death.

Perhaps this was a heinous crime in the 3k era, but in 40k, working for the oil men is generally considered a blessing.

After all, they will regard you as an important asset and will not easily damage or waste you.

Although they will squeeze out the maximum surplus value from you in a way that would make even capitalists ashamed, at least within the theoretical scope recognized by the oil men, they will do their best to ensure your "normal use".

Even if there is a problem with your body, such as organ disease or limb injury, which affects your work efficiency, the oil men will provide prostheses or artificial organs to ensure that your body can still perform the assigned work.

Unless you are worn out and can no longer work, to the oil men, you are a gear needed for the machine to operate.

This is not a description, but if you perform well enough and gain the approval of the oil men, they will really transform you into a robot servant and then weld you to the production line.

(End of this chapter)