1. Cao Dewang's remarks caused an uproar.
On December 13, 2022, a remark titled "I'd rather donate my money than raise the wages of corporate employees" was overwhelming on the Internet. This shocking speech came from the mouth of Cao Dewang, China's first good.
As the honorary president of the Fujian Charity Federation, Cao Dewang has paid more than 16 billion yuan in donations over the years, covering disaster relief, poverty alleviation, disability assistance and other fields. He has always been known as "China's first benevolent" and is known as a typical representative of "philanthropist".
However, this jaw-dropping statement shattered his image as a philanthropist in an instant. Netizens were excited, shouting "The face of the capitalist is finally revealed" and "I know that he is not simple". Netizens who set up chopsticks soon "feasted" on Cao Dewang's various black materials.
Second, Cao Dewang's growth experience.
After netizens conducted a "human flesh search", Cao Dewang's life experience also surfaced. In fact, his upbringing was not as smooth as he appeared on the outside.
When he was young, Cao Dewang lived a wealthy life, and his father owned an industry in Shanghai. But the good times didn't last long, and his family was backward, and he was forced to run around to earn a living. From porter to thread rolling shaft, from repairman to fungus planting, in just a few years, Cao Dewang has changed more than a dozen occupations.
It was these years of hard work that made him extremely sensitive to business opportunities. When he was in his 30s, Cao Dewang relied on the glass business to dig his first pot of gold. In middle age, he used glass technology to found Fuyao Group, and led the group from water meter glass to the first automotive glass.
It can be said that Cao Dewang knows the situation of employees well. He is well aware of the hard work of grassroots migrant workers and the need to improve their lives. So this remark undoubtedly hurt the feelings of employees to a great extent.
3. The development history of Fuyao Group.
Fuyao Group started as a small water meter glass factory, and gradually developed into an industry leader by relying on the vision and perseverance of its founder, Cao Dewang. In the 90s, Fuyao Group began to get involved in automotive glass manufacturing, and actively introduced foreign advanced technology to fill the domestic gap.
Through continuous technological innovation and management updates, Fuyao Automotive Glass has obvious advantages in quality and price, and is favored by domestic automobile manufacturers. In 2010, it even won an anti-dumping lawsuit in the United States and became a world-renowned automotive glass giant.
It can be said that the development history of Fuyao Group is a history of continuous leapfrogging and enterprising. Such an enterprise is inseparable from the joint efforts of the upper and lower 50 years. Employees are loyal and dedicated to the company, but they do not get the same return from the company, which is indeed a sense of loss.
Fourth, Cao Dewang's charitable deeds.
Over the years, Cao Dewang has adhered to public welfare and charity, and has repeatedly donated money and materials to education, poverty alleviation, disaster relief and other fields, and is known as the first person on the glorious list of "let love spread all over thousands of mountains and rivers".
According to incomplete statistics, Cao Dewang and Fuyao Group have donated more than 16 billion yuan. Among them, donations to various natural and man-made disasters are as high as hundreds of millions of yuan. During the 2008 Wenchuan period, Fuyao Group also donated automotive glass and accessories worth 20 million yuan.
It is precisely because of his outstanding achievements in public welfare and charity that Cao Dewang has won honorary titles such as "China's Top Ten Philanthropists" and "Top Ten People Who Moved Fujian". For a philanthropist who spares no effort in public welfare, such remarks undoubtedly greatly diminish his social influence.
Fifth, Fuyao employees "996" ** to no avail.
As this matter continues to ferment, some employees of Fuyao Group broke the news that the company's employees have been working overtime for a long time, basically from 9 am to 9 pm every day, and there is no overtime pay. This "996" work system makes many employees feel unbearable.
Employees have repeatedly reported the "996" problem to the company's senior management and asked for a salary increase, hoping to reduce work intensity or increase income. But the call for a pay rise has never been met with a positive response. On the contrary, Cao Dewang himself has repeatedly emphasized in public that there is no overtime problem in the company, and the income and benefits of employees are already very good.
Such an obvious inconsistency between words and deeds collapsed the image of a philanthropist who has always been known for caring for employees. When employees "revealed the truth", Cao Dewang's speech this time seemed to have foreshadowed his refusal to raise salaries.
6. What can we learn from this?
Through this incident, it is not difficult to see that successful businessmen and philanthropists are not automatically equated. An enterprise that truly cares about the well-being of its employees will not have a situation where employees work overtime for a long time without paying a single cent of overtime pay.
Of course, donating to public welfare is a great thing in itself, and Cao Dewang, as an outstanding entrepreneur, has indeed invested heavily in this area. However, we should not ignore the importance of the construction of internal incentive mechanisms.
If an enterprise wants to become truly bigger and stronger, it is inseparable from the loyalty and hard work of employees. If employees can't even guarantee their basic livelihood, how can they work with peace of mind and devote themselves wholeheartedly?I hope that Cao Dewang can also re-examine his position on the issue of salary increase.