Under the Same Blue Sky - Cases and Comments on the Rights Protection of Migrant Workers Going to Cities

Author: Gu Jianhui / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features:
Link Three: Focusing on "Brand Labor Force" At the 2004 Shanghai Agricultural Exhibition, Quzhou City in Zhejiang Province, led by the Party Secretary, promoted its nannies as specialty products, much like recommending unique local goods. These specially trained, uniformly dressed "brand nannies" skillfully demonstrated their household management abilities and gracefully answered people's questions. Due to their outstanding performance, these "brand nannies" were quickly "snapped up." Quzhou's approach offers great inspiration and lessons. Paying attention to, nurturing, and promoting "brand labor force" not only brings direct economic benefits to workers but also yields immeasurable social benefits.
Link Four: Entrepreneurs "Inviting Farm Laborers to Learn Skills" Yan Zhencai, a farmer entrepreneur from Puna Town in Donghai County, Jiangsu Province, invested 500,000 yuan to bring farm laborers into classrooms, transforming the once "mud-footed" workers into "knowledgeable individuals." Employees of Liaoyang Gaodong Pu Pipe Company were previously farmers. Since 1994, Yan Zhencai has recruited 11 mid-to-high-level technical professionals and managers from Shanghai, Nanjing, and other places to provide technical training for all employees. Additionally, he selected workers to pursue further studies at universities and colleges. For these rural farmers, learning was no easier than working. Yan encouraged them, explaining that to become modern workers, they must master many skills to adapt to the times. Over the past decade, Yan has invested 500,000 yuan in intellectual development, transforming these traditional farmers into modern technical workers. During this period, the company obtained multiple national patents and paid over 20 million yuan in taxes. (Excerpted from Wan Min's "Entrepreneurs 'Inviting Farm Laborers to Learn Skills'" in New Agriculture, Issue 11, 2004)
Link Five: No Restrictions on High-Level Farm Laborers' Household Registration in Shenzhen In 2004, Shenzhen's recruitment and transfer policy made a major breakthrough by breaking down urban-rural and geographical boundaries, implementing special policies for skilled talents in production lines who possessed technical expertise and operational capabilities: First, it lifted the restriction on couples being reviewed together, allowing high-skilled workers originally holding non-local household registration but unable to enter Shenzhen due to their rural spouse to obtain household registration in Shenzhen. Second, it enabled rural-origin high-skilled workers to apply for "rural-to-urban" conversion procedures during the recruitment and transfer process. Third, it allowed the fathers of high-skilled workers to apply for "rural-to-urban" conversion and relocation procedures for children under 16 years old on the same household registration book during the recruitment and transfer process.
Link Six: What Kind of Migrant Workers Coastal Enterprises Want? Zhejiang entrepreneurs have outlined their criteria for "good migrant workers": honesty, ambition, and a positive attitude toward employment. Zhou Xiaoguang, a National People's Congress representative and chairman of Zhejiang Xin Guang Jewelry Co., Ltd., believes that employees' employment outlook is crucial. Even for migrant workers, it is important to have long-term planning. She notes, "If migrant workers frequently change jobs, it is a major headache for entrepreneurs." Governments in various regions of Zhejiang and some mature enterprises are now placing increasing emphasis on the treatment of migrant workers, ensuring they have opportunities for learning and growth. "For migrant workers to transition from farmers to workers, they must have ambition," says Su Zengfu, a National People's Congress representative and chairman of Supor Group Co., Ltd. "This transition is not just about learning factory work schedules and leave policies but also about acquiring certain skills, which is the foundation for migrant workers to establish themselves in the city—and this takes time." Hu Jirong, general manager of Xingyue Group from Yongkang, Zhejiang—a city known as "China's Hardware Capital"—suggests that as long as migrant workers are honest and hardworking, they will not struggle to find good jobs. Zhejiang is a dense region of traditional manufacturing. Among the main industrial products tracked by the National Bureau of Statistics, 336 types of Zhejiang products rank in the top 10 nationally, accounting for 63%. Migrant workers play a significant role in supporting Zhejiang's manufacturing sector. P10-11