When Gou's counterattack was underway, Foxconn's mainland factory ushered in a change
For more than a month ago, China's ** suddenly launched an in-depth investigation into Foxconn Group, involving sensitive areas such as taxation and land, and the situation suddenly became tense and complicated. As the founder of Foxconn, Terry Gou is fearless and adaptable in the face of this social challenge and severe test.
However, what is shocking is that Foxconn recently announced that it will strictly follow China's labor laws and regulations and implement a standard work system of eight hours a day, five days a week, which has sparked heated discussions and controversies in all walks of life in China. Although this measure seems positive, foreign countries have interpreted it as an attempt by Foxconn to divert ** and minimize its own responsibility.
Foxconn follows the iPhone
Foxconn is a well-known Taiwanese electronics giant whose main business is to assemble mobile phones and other electronic devices for well-known manufacturers such as Apple. The company has a large production base and workforce in Chinese mainland, and was once one of the largest employers in Chinese mainland.
However, despite the strength of the business, Foxconn, as one of the leading companies in the industry, has not had a good time. Its working conditions and pay have been criticized by workers and the public**, especially in the past, when the tragic incident of workers choosing to end their lives has drawn social attention to this issue. At the same time, Foxconn director Terry Gou often sparks controversy because of his strong personality and rhetoric"Setting up a factory in China is a reward"and other remarks caused widespread **.
In addition, as the United States pressures large Chinese technology companies such as Huawei to take a tough stance, Apple is also trying to change parts of the chain to reduce potential risks. As a close partner of Lenovo Apple, Foxconn has also followed in Apple's footsteps, rapidly increasing investment in emerging markets such as India, and plans to relocate factories.
Some time ago, Foxconn's parent company, Hon Hai Group, issued a public statement announcing that Foxconn would invest 11 billion yuan in India to build a new smartphone assembly line. This is following the 3 that Foxconn spent some time agoAfter 500 million US dollars to expand the market share in India, it is another attempt to expand the layout.
Rumor has it that Foxconn's strategic goal is to move its current production capacity on the African continent, which is worth about $300 billion, to India as a way to meet Apple's growing market demand. The move means Foxconn intends to slash its production facilities and workforce on the continent, and may even close some of its factories.
Foxconn announced new regulations.
Some time ago, the new regulations announced by Foxconn attracted quite attention. Specifically, Foxconn decided to strictly abide by Chinese mainland's labor laws and regulations, implementing a five-day workweek and an eight-hour workday. While this may sound positive to uninformed people, in reality, if you know anything about it, you'll realize that it's a clear signal from Foxconn**.
In Foxconn's factory in Shenzhen, for example, the basic salary of an average factory worker is around 2,500 yuan. If they want to get a higher wage, they can only do so by working overtime. In the past, many Foxconn workers preferred to work overtime, often more than 12 hours a day, in order to increase their income.
With the implementation of Foxconn's new regulations, the working environment in the factory has changed dramatically, and the working day is strictly limited to eight hours, which means that the income of many Foxconn workers will be significantly reduced. The original situation that you can earn **1,000 yuan per month through hard work will no longer exist, and it is even possible that even if you try your best, you can only earn 5,000 yuan per month.
At present, the Internet is full of questions and controversies about Foxconn's five-day workweek. However, the vast majority of analysts believe that Foxconn's move is undoubtedly a deliberate retaliation. To some extent, this is Gou's response to Foxconn's multiple investigations;At the same time, the deeper significance lies in the fact that this is also a kind of warning from Foxconn to the authorities. In the current context, if Foxconn blindly follows the trend and strictly restricts working hours, the decline in workers' incomes will lead to large living expenses such as housing loans and car loans becoming a burden on many families, eroding the economic vitality of the entire society.
Will Foxconn run away?
If so, I think some people will ask, will Foxconn's cancellation of workers' overtime have a negative impact on themselves?Because reducing man-hours will inevitably reduce output, which is tantamount to"1,000 wounds to the enemy and 800 self-inflicted losses", it is difficult to last. If you have a similar idea, I'm afraid it will take a lot of practice to understand what it means.
In fact, for five years, or even more than six years, Foxconn has been pushing ahead with the factory relocation plan, and a large number of production bases have been relocated to India, Vietnam and other places. Taking India as an example, according to official statistics, the proportion of Apple phones produced in India is expected to reach 20%-30% of Apple's total production capacity from next year.
Rationally, from the perspective of Foxconn's overseas production chain, the production base in the mainland is still important, but it is relatively weak compared to five or even six years ago. This is also the reason why Foxconn dares to implement a five-day, eight-hour work week in mainland factories and believes that there is no problem.
From a broader perspective, Foxconn's five-day, eight-hour workweek can be seen as a competitive behavior at the top of its hierarchy, or as a negative response to the findings. At the same time, we can also think that there are many mysteries and twists and turns along the way, which will not be repeated here. However, for ordinary people, Foxconn's sudden announcement of a five-day, eight-hour workweek has undoubtedly caused many people to feel distressed and anxious. In the current social context, the changes and developments in the industry have a profound impact on everyone. If Foxconn chooses to reduce workers' wages by reducing working hours, it will undoubtedly make the lives of more families difficult and the economic pressure will multiply.
It is worth noting that after Gou's response, another topic immediately heated up on the Internet: Will Foxconn choose to withdraw from the Chinese market?As a bystander, the author is pessimistic and cautious, believing that the possibility of this happening is very small, but I have to admit that the importance of the mainland market to Foxconn will gradually decrease in the future, and Foxconn will not be able to restore its previous position.
Some time ago, we saw some people continue to defend Foxconn, trying to cover up Foxconn's bad behavior in the name of advancing the rule of law in China. In this regard, I would like to ask two questions: Why did Foxconn never mention the implementation of a five-day, eight-hour work week in the past busy order fairs?On the contrary, why would Foxconn suddenly propose such a system at a critical moment, after the relocation of part of its production capacity?There aren't many coincidences in the world, and it looks more like a well-planned plan for profit. In addition, there may be broader reasons for Foxconn's action – such as circumventing regulation and reducing the cost of layoffs.
As I mentioned in my last article, Foxconn is under a joint scrutiny by two of China's largest institutions. If there is a tax or land problem, Foxconn will suffer huge losses.
Regarding Foxconn's announcement of a five-day, eight-hour workweek, there are rumors that this is a way for Gou to put pressure on the mainland. He tried to take advantage of the massive unemployment of factory workers to force regulators to open their doors to him. These claims are deeply worrisome.
However, what needs to be clear is that China is no longer the country that relies on Foxconn. While there may be short-term fluctuations in the economy and employment across the country in some places, China's overall economy is not entirely dependent on Foxconn. The Chinese market is of great strategic value to Apple, which in turn is a significant source of revenue for Foxconn**. So I ask you: who is more dependent on the other?