The Self-Cultivation of a Reborn Massage Therapist

Chapter 246 Nantong Renamed Jinghai: A Happy Moment
(Some chapters will have about 200 words deleted by the backend, and will later be replaced with pseudonyms or pinyin.)
Jinghai City has been known as the "Gateway to the Rivers and the Sea" since ancient times.

Zhang Jian, the top scholar in the imperial examination at the end of the Qing Dynasty, established industries, education, and philanthropy in Jinghai, creating "China's first modern city" and making Jinghai a model of early modernization.

This city, with over 6000 years of human activity, a thousand-year history of city building, and a century of modern glory, boasts the world's third-largest and the nation's largest textile industry.

According to sample data from the Jinghai Municipal Federation of Industry and Commerce, approximately 60% of small and medium-sized enterprises in the textile industry have not paid the full amount of the five social insurances, and 80% have not paid the housing provident fund.

Only the top 10% of companies can achieve both "social security contributions based on actual income" and "full payment of housing provident fund".

Of the 10%, state-owned enterprises are by no means the main body. So, leaving aside state-owned enterprises and, needless to say, foreign-funded enterprises, the reason why listed and unlisted private enterprises in this 10% do this is for two reasons.

The first is the CSRC's ESG disclosure requirements, which require proactively regulating employment practices; the second is that in order to pass the brand's "human rights factory audit," they will proactively exceed the standards of regulations.

The two contract manufacturers that are taking it easy and slow belong to the latter category.

The above is an excerpt from "The Enforcement Dilemma and Countermeasures of Irregularities in Social Security Payments in Jinghai Textile Industry" by Zhou Zhengping, a third-level chief staff member of the Labor Security Supervision Section of the Jinghai Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau.

So, is the data above accurate?

Primitive bones do not lie, so Jinghai truly has a history of human activity of over 6000 years; ancient city ruins do not lie, so Jinghai truly has a history of city building of over a thousand years.

Interestingly, this paper, soon to be published through official channels, contains a section that I dare not excerpt here. This section focuses on small and medium-sized contract manufacturers, and its lengthy title is condensed into four words: —

Falsified base figures!

…………

Wang Xiulan has been taking her son to school for seventeen consecutive days.

This was almost impossible in the past.

In the past, she would always leave before dawn, ride her clanging electric bike to the Jin Dayang No. 2 workshop, stand for ten hours amidst the roar of the machines, and by the time she finished get off work, her back was so stiff it was like an iron plate, and she didn't even have the strength to flip through her son's homework.

Now, the new rules in the workshop have mandated lunch breaks and rest periods, and even forced adjustments to the shift schedule—she can finally stand in front of the stove at 7:00 AM sharp, watching the water in the pot bubbling away, instead of mechanically repeating the same action on the assembly line.

She cooked millet porridge today and added a small handful of red dates—which she bought on sale at the supermarket last week. She would never normally look at something that "doesn't fill you up."

The porridge was simmering in the pot, and she fried two eggs, the edges slightly browned but the yolks still soft. Her son, rubbing his eyes, came out from the inner room, his schoolbag strap askew. Seeing the bowl on the table, he paused, then asked, "Mom, aren't we having steamed buns today?"

"Don't you get tired of steamed buns every day?" She reached out and straightened the strap of his backpack. "Go wash your face."

When I dropped my son off at the school gate, the morning mist had not yet dissipated.

Her son waved to her, ran into the school gate, then suddenly turned back, took a piece of fruit candy from his pocket and gave it to her: "This is a reward from the teacher yesterday, I'm saving it for you."

Wang Xiulan walked towards the factory area clutching the candy. When she passed a breakfast stall, she bought a cup of soy milk for the first time ever—not the cheapest packaged soy milk, but freshly ground, for three yuan a cup.

She took small sips; the taste was just as she had imagined—sweet.

"Hello, are you Wang Xiulan?"

Hearing someone call her name, Wang Xiulan turned around and saw a strange man.

Zhou Zhengping walked over wearing a white shirt, with a peaceful smile on his face.

“Section Chief Zhou…” Wang Xiulan asked hesitantly.

"You know me?" Zhou Zhengping was somewhat surprised.

Wang Xiulan nodded: "You visited our workshop once during an inspection tour." Zhou Zhengping looked pleased: "That makes things simpler. May I ask you a few questions?"

Wang Xiulan looked back at the factory, somewhat nervously: "Is this a formal survey?"

Zhou Zhengping shook his head and said gently, "It's just a small survey during my private time."

After he finished speaking, he took out paper and pen from his briefcase. Wang Xiulan glanced at them and read, “A Study on the Impact of Upgrading Labor Standards on Small and Micro Enterprises…”.

The blanket was quickly closed; Wang Xiulan hadn't finished reading the headline.

"Could you tell me about the changes in your workshop over the past two weeks?"

"Have those requirements for a relaxed and slow pace... such as lunch breaks and social security, actually been implemented?" Zhou Zhengping asked casually, but his pen hovered over the paper, waiting for an answer.

“The lunch break is true.” Wang Xiulan’s voice softened. “It’s just that… the finance department said the night shift allowance for Li Caiyun’s group last month will only be paid next month.”

What is your workshop's lunch break time now?

"Half an hour, which is fifteen minutes longer than before."

"After the adjustment of the social security contribution base, will my actual take-home pay change?"

"This..." Wang Xiulan glanced around cautiously, "I heard it will show up next month."

The pen scratched across the paper. Zhou Zhengping suddenly asked, "If the brand hadn't put pressure on us, do you think the factory would have voluntarily increased social security contributions?"

Wang Xiulan gripped the soy milk cup tightly: "Section Chief Zhou, is this question... asked by the Labor Bureau, or...?"

“This is a personal question.” Zhou Zhengping closed his notebook. “My daughter’s homeroom teacher always says that only through cooperation between home and school can children be taught well—the same principle applies to labor relations.”

The sound of the work bell could be heard in the distance. Wang Xiulan looked at the factory gate, where several coworkers were hurrying towards the clock-in point.

"Section Chief Zhou," Wang Xiulan said softly, not understanding anything about labor relations, "my son can now have a hot breakfast."

Zhou Zhengping closed his notebook and nodded. The two parted ways at the factory gate, and Wang Xiulan turned and ran towards the factory, quickly disappearing into the morning mist.

He stood there, watching, without moving.

The sudden changes in several production lines at this contract manufacturer have disrupted the industry's tacit understanding of 'low-cost competition,' which is exactly what the local government wants to see.

But for the industry, the opposite is true.

The government did not promote it extensively, hoping to let the leisurely and quiet pace continue, adopting a policy of "boiling the frog in lukewarm water."

But for the industry, Easy Slow Travel has no plans to go public and is itself a brand owner. Is it trying to be a saint or to ascend to heaven?
Apple's Supplier Code of Conduct only mandates one day off per week, yet you dare to demand a two-day weekend? And you even say 'all overtime should be paid at the statutory premium rate'?
"Drip~"

The text message notification snapped Zhou Zhengping out of his reverie. He pulled out his phone, his brow furrowing slightly.

Urgent Notice: Starting today, special inspections of the textile industry are suspended to prioritize ensuring stable employment in enterprises.

Zhou Zhengping sighed deeply.

If only the leisurely pace of life had happened ten years ago, in that era of economic recovery, soaring orders, and businesses expanding production!

With nearly nine million graduates facing employment pressure this year, does the local government have a choice: to protect a few slow-moving OEM production lines or to protect the entire industry?
(End of this chapter)