Nike factory in Dongguan (Guangdong province)
Throughout Guangdong province the managers of the factories thought that the lack of returning workers after the Chinese New Year break in early February was because they had been delayed by the huge blizzard that disrupted rail and power lines, and left roads impassable.
But now, when the mess is cleaned up, it's clear that the vast annual migration is beginning to diminish. Now the question is : What's the reason for this?
Research reckons that between 10% and 30% of the workers did not return after the holiday.
So many factories are reeling. Wages, who were already rising, will surely go up further, adding to surging costs for credit, materials, energy, environmental compliance and health care.
The situation looks not so positive at the moment, meanwhile revenues are falling due to slowing demand from America and a reduction, following pressure from other countries, in China's complex system of export subsidies.
Estimations say 10-20% of the 70,000 factories in Guangdong province had closed in the past year, and expected a similar number to close within the next two years. Two-thirds of those polled said they were unsure whether to invest more in the region; one-third planned to cut investment. There are not a lot op positive reactions from the factories in that area.
The hope is that the gaps in Guangdong will be filled by factories producing more sophisticated, high-value products (instead of dirty, low-paying industries) that are cleaner and less energy-intensive to produce. There are signs that this is indeed happening.
But what is now the reason of the reduced flow of migrant workers?
Factories are opening up in China's interior, providing opportunities for those in rural areas to find employment closer to home, rather than having to leave their families for an entire year.
This is more than probably the main reason, but other reasons are not excluded, such as the poor working conditions..
SOURCE
1 opmerking:
I think it's not healthy that so many factories have closed and others will close. But if there's really no other way then it's good that they will be replaced by factories that are cleaner and less-energy-intensive to produce.
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