Read about the Chinese company Foxconn. What do you think is more important to you, saving a few bucks or the working conditions of those people that amount to slaves?
The End of Cheap Chinese Goods-What will it Mean for You?
by fulltimestudent 55 Replies latest social current
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ÁrbolesdeArabia
Here's a spin on this story dating back 1 year ago, along with problems China would face.
Let's head back to the year 2010, with another headline "End of Cheap Chinese Goods"
"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/08/end-of-the-cheap-madeinch_n_639718.html
Every year since 2006, I hear stories of China wanting to grab the better jobs by abandoning their cheap manufacturing jobs that exploit their environment, quality of life and human capital. Chinese are great at stealing technology, not honoring trademark or intellectual property, why would anyone want to develop products in China or Russia when anyone can steal their ideas? ..
China paid some electronic engineers from Applied Materials, Intel, Cirus, Qualcomm to move over and share their ideas, after a year the electronic engineer project managers/supervisors decided they liked the United States better. Why move to a breathing hell on earth, unless you have been to China, you can't understand who you feel like your part of a hundred million hamsters cramming through the streets. China brings so much cultural shock to Americans teaching anything from Science, Math to English, you quite never fit in "Lao Wai"
More "End of Cheap Chinese labor 2010 http://seekingalpha.com/article/208105-the-end-of-cheap-chinese-labor
We can go back to 2006 and locate articles predicting the end of Chinese manufactured being cheap, and still we develop the problem in China with large amounts of unemployment (not on the books), leading to riots. What jobs are the Chinese magically going to steal from developed countries with great infrastructure, a clean environment, freedom of speech, freedom of thought, property protection?
How does India's large skilled labor force compare with China's manufacturing economy?
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Satanus
' How does India's large skilled labor force compare with China's manufacturing economy? '
China is a dictatorship, india is a democracy. As such, india has less controls on its masses. Indians, more freedom. China, everyone under control of govt. It's a huge work camp.
China has the infrastucture. India does not. Perhaps corps should 'invest' in india, except they don't need to, cuz china already has the factories built.
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ÁrbolesdeArabia
Corps are investing in India, India has more human rights than China, and India does have natural resources of sorts to extract. The government in India takes a different approach from out right theft of people's land and assets.
India has a higher educated work force than China, India is Hi Technology and China wants to join this arena. We can see how this works out, China and India have different views on what a human being is, I prefer the Indian viewpoint.
China is allowed to take your land and without compensation of consequence, the Indian Government has been fair to people who make complaints of fraud, they layer of government is old Britsh style, but it's better than giant slave labor camps.
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fulltimestudent
Mr Freeze, Foxconn is the trading name of Hon Hai Precision Industry, a Taiwanese multinational Electronics manufacturing that is a principal maker for Apple. Foxconn has many factories in many different cities in China and it seems to have one of the worst records in China for labour relations.
The latest instance of unrest (this year) started as a dispute in a dormitory between some workers. Factory security intervened and bashed on of the workers so badly that he nearly died, a riot developed and the civil police had to be called.
I think you have to remember that 30 years ago, China can only be described as poor. In 30 years it has become the second richest nation (as measured by GDP) in the world and probably in the next 10-15 years will have the biggest GDP in the world.
The government strategy (as expressed by Deng Xiaoping) was to allow a market economy to develop, with both private enterprise and SOE's (Corporations with mainly government shareholdings) . Shares were allowed to be traded so that stock exchanges could gradually develop ( which they have). On the way from 1978 to 2012, there has been a gradual improvement in living standards. Along the East coast, most people have reasonable jobs and a middle class way of life.
A friend I made 3 years ago, came from a village farm. His father had worked in factories to earn enough money to send this friend and his brother to university. This friend did well in his IT field and was snapped up be a large bank when he graduated. He is well aware of the sacrifice his father made, working long hours in factories to attemtp to give his kids a better future. And, that's the reason that so many Chinese work in factories like Foxconn. Would you do that for your kids? We are already seeing a second generation of middle class people. A university friend, doing accounting at my University (which trains about 4,500 Chinese students) wanted to stay in Australia. Naturally, he's got a lot of competition for a job, but was accepted on his first interview, by a mid sized accounting company.
Another friend, spent 8 years studying here (Australia)- his parents had a business selling bathroom and kitchen equipment. He decided to return to China, and has built the family business to a chain of six showrooms. He's just been here in Sydney sourcing Australian products to sell in another business he is starting. He's now really wealthy. He also is an independent (i.e. not a member of the CPC) member of the city government in his city.
In the 30+ years since Deng set the new creed - "To get rich is glorious." Many have done exactly that. Never before in history have so many people moved from poverty to middle class life. But it all started with the change of policy by the CPC. It should be stated that many prominent members of the CPC, (who had supported the CPC over the American supported GMD(KMT)) wanted a mixed economy. In brief, Mao wanted to try a different path. When his Great Leap Forward failed, the CPC pushed Mao sideways. His reaction was the Cultural Revolution, which brought China to a standstill, until even Mao eased up. Mao called his in-party opponents, "capitalist-roaders" as he was opposed to a market economy.
The era of the Foxconn type factories is nearing its end, because wealth is spreading to even the poorer parts of China.
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Hortensia
I don't know. I buy nearly everything second-hand, except my laptop. I don't replace the laptop very often, the last one I just replaced was 7 years old. I don't buy food in cans, boxes, jars or bags very often, cook my food mostly from scratch.
I recently saw some photos of a town in Africa, Sierra Leone I think, that is built on a trash dump and has cholera every year. There are places like that in many poor countries. To level the playing field around the world, Americans and other comfortable Western countries will have to lower their standard of living. There aren't enough resources in the world for everyone in the world to live like we do. For others to have a better life, we have to have a simpler life. OK by me.
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badseed
Even if they'd give the Chinese workers 100% raise it would still be cheap labor, prices won't be affected that much. Glad to see the Chinese workers demanding more, though. Just goes to show that in today's world you can't keep people in the dark for very long.
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Satanus
China, basically, lifted itself to this new higher standard of living. True, starting w nixon/kissenger, they door to investment was opened from the outside. However, development still depended on the chinese, the govt and the people. Without that, it would still be a mideval type squaler.
If africa also wants improvement, then it needs to take what is given it and make something of it. There has been lots of investment and attempts from the outside. South africa, under apartheid oppressive as it was, was a system that improved the country, as a whole. Africa didn't want even the good parts of that. The black part of the population of africa could have adopted a more productive way. Africa doesn't seem to want that. It seems to be far behind the world, generally.
Algeria, under khadaffi was one of the most progressive countries in north africa. The western capitalists hated algeria for keeping and using it's wealth for the betterment of it's own people. Khadaffi had wide influence in africa as well. The american military industrial complex wouldn't stand for that and found ways to destroy and loot the country. A sad situation results in algeria. Islum is marching ever onward in africa.
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kurtbethel
It's false economy to pay $10 for a Chinese widgit that becomes unrepairable landfill fodder in less than a year instead of $40 for something that will last a decade or more. So the end of "cheap" goods is good news in the long run.
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DATA-DOG
Hopefully it will mean the beginning of a new era of our children learning some valuable skills. There is nothing that we need that we cannot make here. I want products from this country, I want to drive to see where my widgets are made if I want. I don't want my weights made from ore that is mined here, shipped to china, manufactured, and then shipped back. On the other hand I know those poor people in China need work to live. The system sucks. Rich people living extremely extravagant lives while the poor are barely paid enough to live on. I am all about the right to have a business and be successful, even rich, I just wish more people would help each other. Just thinking about others suffering makes me sad.,, Live simply so that others may simply live. Peace...
DD
