China debates workers' rights
By Francis Markus
BBC correspondent in Shanghai
China has a huge pool of workers, many poorly paid
"Those workers in Europe and North America, they just have it too cushy," Mr Shen says with a jovial laugh.
"If they don't want to do overtime, they just go home. They say you can't make them work more because it's against the labour law.
"They're always taking coffee breaks and if they're unemployed they get paid almost as much as when they're working."
It sounds like a typical tirade from a conservative Western politician - perhaps something that would get nods of agreement from a self-made Chinese entrepreneur.
But Mr Shen is rather a different species.
He's a director of what used to be a state-owned textile firm now listed on the Shanghai stock market.
He certainly doesn't look like the type to go shopping in Shanghai's newly-opened Armani store.
He's wearing black cotton shoes which you can buy for about a dollar a pair.
Trade effect
Mr Shen seems in no doubt that the problem is with Western workers being overleisured and pampered.
Hi-tech workers enjoy better pay and conditions
He reckons it will take 50 years for average Chinese living standards to rise to comparable levels.
He does acknowledge, however, that things are tough for the Chinese factory worker.
Long hours, low pay, and if the work needs rushing through, then the overtime has to be put in.
Mr Shen's remarks come as the disparity between Chinese and Western working conditions are increasingly casting a shadow over China's trade relationships.
With the US presidential election looming in November, one of the latest trade salvoes between America and China has come from US labour unions.
They say the Chinese competition which they allege is the cause of so many job losses is brought about by China's widespread disregard for labour rights.
Of course, many analysts dispute the idea that China is to blame for American job losses. They say it's much more a question of productivity improvements and other factors.
But even if that argument is a contentious one, the problem of labour rights is nonetheless a live issue in China.
Local concern
There have been heartrending cases of migrant workers committing suicide because they have not been getting their construction site wages.
There's quite a bit of discussion in China about how to address these labour problems.
But it is extremely unlikely to result in the creation of independent trade unions.
China still has a huge cost advantage
That would be something the communist authorities fear both from a political and an economic point of view.
But there is anecdotal evidence that factories are now having to provide better conditions in order to retain their migrant workforce and to keep the skills base they've built up.
The inducements on offer are said to include better pay, leisure facilities, and social clubs so that workers can overcome their difficulty in meeting marriage partners.
As China battles to move up the technological ladder, this need to cultivate a stable and skilled workforce, at least at the pinnacle of the tech sector, will be an important factor.
Even if Mr Shen at the textile factor doesn't think so, perhaps there will over time be a gentle convergence of ideas between China and the West about how to keep the workers happy and make them want to stay in their jobs.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3684015.stm
By Francis Markus
BBC correspondent in Shanghai
China has a huge pool of workers, many poorly paid
"Those workers in Europe and North America, they just have it too cushy," Mr Shen says with a jovial laugh.
"If they don't want to do overtime, they just go home. They say you can't make them work more because it's against the labour law.
"They're always taking coffee breaks and if they're unemployed they get paid almost as much as when they're working."
It sounds like a typical tirade from a conservative Western politician - perhaps something that would get nods of agreement from a self-made Chinese entrepreneur.
But Mr Shen is rather a different species.
He's a director of what used to be a state-owned textile firm now listed on the Shanghai stock market.
He certainly doesn't look like the type to go shopping in Shanghai's newly-opened Armani store.
He's wearing black cotton shoes which you can buy for about a dollar a pair.
Trade effect
Mr Shen seems in no doubt that the problem is with Western workers being overleisured and pampered.
Hi-tech workers enjoy better pay and conditions
He reckons it will take 50 years for average Chinese living standards to rise to comparable levels.
He does acknowledge, however, that things are tough for the Chinese factory worker.
Long hours, low pay, and if the work needs rushing through, then the overtime has to be put in.
Mr Shen's remarks come as the disparity between Chinese and Western working conditions are increasingly casting a shadow over China's trade relationships.
With the US presidential election looming in November, one of the latest trade salvoes between America and China has come from US labour unions.
They say the Chinese competition which they allege is the cause of so many job losses is brought about by China's widespread disregard for labour rights.
Of course, many analysts dispute the idea that China is to blame for American job losses. They say it's much more a question of productivity improvements and other factors.
But even if that argument is a contentious one, the problem of labour rights is nonetheless a live issue in China.
Local concern
There have been heartrending cases of migrant workers committing suicide because they have not been getting their construction site wages.
There's quite a bit of discussion in China about how to address these labour problems.
But it is extremely unlikely to result in the creation of independent trade unions.
China still has a huge cost advantage
That would be something the communist authorities fear both from a political and an economic point of view.
But there is anecdotal evidence that factories are now having to provide better conditions in order to retain their migrant workforce and to keep the skills base they've built up.
The inducements on offer are said to include better pay, leisure facilities, and social clubs so that workers can overcome their difficulty in meeting marriage partners.
As China battles to move up the technological ladder, this need to cultivate a stable and skilled workforce, at least at the pinnacle of the tech sector, will be an important factor.
Even if Mr Shen at the textile factor doesn't think so, perhaps there will over time be a gentle convergence of ideas between China and the West about how to keep the workers happy and make them want to stay in their jobs.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3684015.stm
