备用一楼。先开一个坑，明天更新。
先简要介绍一下。我所在的工厂是一个不锈钢管厂。规模相当小，工人总数只有四十多名，领导有十几名。在办公楼中的销售等我不知道的职位人数，比工人和工厂领导的总数还要多，但都依靠工人的生产来养活。
本文将从我的第一视角出发，介绍我所看到的工厂情况，以及我与工人的交往方式，同时与大家分享遇到的问题。希望能为暂时无法进入工厂斗争的同志们提供一些参考。
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This post is mainly about factories and workers, so I won’t go into details about the specific names and data of machines and products in the industry.
The factory is roughly divided into three parts: pipe fittings and their packaging, industrial control pipes and their post-processing, and water control pipes and their post-processing. They operate very differently and are divided into different areas of different workshops. Each part has its own team leader and group leader, leading a group of workers. The working hours of each team are also not uniform; except for the more core veteran workers, others are not fixed in one team and are allocated according to production tasks at any time.
First, let’s talk about the team for pipe fittings and their packaging.
This factory has all the machines from cutting to packaging for pipe fittings. Each machine is only good at its own process, and after processing, it connects to the next machine in the line. After each process, information is filled out on the process card, and the finished product is sent for packaging and shipment. This forms a production line, and the product is born this way. Each process “can now progress in space simultaneously. For example, in shoemaking, while some people are attaching soles, others can be doing side work, sewing edges, bottoming, and last setting. Working this way allows for the rapid production of a large number of products in a short time.”
In capitalist factories, there is a production plan: how much needs to be processed in total each month, and how much each machine should process daily, all calculated in advance. Workers do not need to set production orders but must maintain them. Failing to meet the planned targets results in fines. To ensure wages, workers are often so busy they have no time even to drink water. “The organizational structure of capitalist society labor is maintained by ‘hunger discipline.’”
In reality, it wasn’t always so urgent at the start, as the planners didn’t understand the specific production situation and only set broad targets. However, the team leaders would always ask workers to work a few more hours daily, and the planned output would increase accordingly. They gained performance and bonuses, but the targets had already risen to the point where workers had to rush to the bathroom. There was also a so-called “lean” department that used very insidious methods. The manager would hold up his phone, say nothing, and record videos of workers. I thought it was for promotional videos or something else, so I worked very seriously and according to standards. The next day, a table comparing “theoretical output” and “actual output” was posted in the group chat. It turned out he calculated the “theoretical output” based on the number of workers working in a one-minute video, and then demanded higher output!
I worked in the pipe fittings area myself for a while. The work was divided into extremely simple tasks, and I could master it quickly. The rest was just repetition. The brain could only be idle to think randomly, but not truly reflect. If a mistake was made, damaging the machine or product was no big deal, but getting injured would be terrible. Second, although the work is simple, with a small scope and not tiring, at most standing all day, long-term engagement in such partial and one-sided work can cause significant chronic harm to the body.
“Because machines simplified the operation process, even workers with weaker physical conditions can participate in production.” About 80% of the workers in the pipe fittings area are women. All women can do all the work, and the output is not different. Changing molds requires male workers, but this kind of task, once taught, women can do it too. Molds are heavy, but male workers are not using their hands to carry them. Although their abilities are the same, their wages are about a thousand lower than men’s, and male workers are also the first to be respected by the leaders.
Moreover, this simplified labor, as discussed in “Introduction to Political Economy”: “Workers only learn to perform a partial operation and cannot produce a finished product themselves. Therefore, if they leave the capitalist’s workshop, they find it very difficult to work independently.” Workers here work hard for a little money but learn nothing, only becoming “skilled workers” for a single machine. Leaving here, their wages might be even lower, and they might not have five social insurances and one housing fund, so they can only continue to endure the harsh environment of this factory.
It’s too late to write more now, so I’ll just jot down these points hurriedly. I will revise later and haven’t yet figured out where the focus should be.
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This is really outrageous. I’ve never heard of such a thing before. Capitalists really find all kinds of ways to exploit workers.
That’s how it is. Although most factory work nowadays isn’t so exhausting that you sweat profusely, the work content is all monotonous and repetitive. Continuously performing high-frequency work without interruption causes chronic damage to the body. It may not be obvious at first, but over the long term, it can even lead to muscular deformities in workers, resulting in specific occupational diseases, and so on.
I used to have a mistaken view. When I was a student, I was full of expectations for working in factories in the future. In fact, it was a kind of parasitic fanaticism of students. I originally hoped that if I entered a factory, I could learn some skills, like how to operate machines, the process of making products, how machines work, etc. But later I found that workers in large capitalist factories have long become puppets of machines. Not only can they hardly learn any technical knowledge, but they also have to work extremely hard to keep up with the machine’s speed, even getting injured. In capitalist society, capitalists only care whether they can create more surplus value and whether machines are utilized to the maximum extent. They simply do not care about workers’ health.
Some workers do think this way. They believe that other places might have worse conditions or that no other factory would hire them, so in order to keep their jobs, they dare not fight for better working conditions. Especially some older female workers, in capitalist society, changing jobs or finding new work is very difficult for them, let alone having any options. They might think they can only keep their jobs by enduring, so they are timid and submissive. This is wrong. Workers should realize that passively accepting only makes capitalists more and more crazy, increasing exploitation. Only through struggle and fighting for their rights can they improve their situation and that of the entire factory. I have also sensed from conversations with workers that many hold this seemingly “helpless” mindset. They say, “We’re older, we can’t compare to your young people who have choices.” We should do our best to change their thinking. This requires us to study Marxism, to develop the ability to persuade others with reason and evidence, and most importantly, to dare to fight against capitalists ourselves, without hypocrisy.
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Will there be an update for Sanshui today?
The basic situation of the pipe fitting group has been introduced, but without concrete and vivid materials, the workers’ experiences are just briefly mentioned, making it hard for people to empathize. Next, I will write a few records of factory life, detailing the people and things I encountered, and then discuss the subsequent content.
2025/2/27
I went to bed very late yesterday, wanted to stay in bed a little longer but fell asleep again, struggled to get up. It was only half an hour before I was already dressed and at the factory.
This factory has a unique “corporate culture.” Every morning during the assembly meeting, workers have to record a video. The team leader recites some safety slogans, and the workers shout in unison “Good!” to show to the leaders. It is said that the leaders pay close attention to the surveillance and morning meeting videos, after all, they never leave the office, so this is how they understand the employees.
After recording, the meeting begins, usually a simple briefing of production tasks, a reminder of upcoming inspections, and lately some formalism. Today I am still working on laser cutting pipes. I have been doing it for a week straight, only a little left, and I will finish cutting in the morning. The cut involves small bent pipes, cutting the pipe ends flat and even. The pipes are small in diameter, thin, and very light to lift. Most of the work is just standing, moving arms to load and unload, and checking if the cuts are damaged. But this morning was also very tough because the cutting process involves invisible light that can harm the eyes, and I have been working continuously for a week. My eyes have no time to recover, feeling swollen and uncomfortable, and I also feel dizzy. I was slacking off, waiting until mealtime to finish.
In the afternoon, I went to the ultrasonic cleaning machine to work with a female worker. The cleaner is a long conveyor belt divided into two parts: the front is a large tank filled with degreasing agent, and the back is filled with fans and heating rods for drying. The pipe fittings go around on the conveyor belt and turn white. I was responsible for refilling materials, and she was at the outlet, counting and bagging. Today we cleaned steel rings, very small, about five centimeters in diameter and about four centimeters high, small round pipes. Six hundred are packed into a woven bag, which is very troublesome to grab by hand, so I used a shovel to scoop directly onto the conveyor belt. But the bag was too large, obstructing me, and because the contents were scattered, every scoop moved the contents a little, often falling off the platform. The female worker told me to roll up the bag, but it was useless because I always had to lift it to gather the steel rings inside. After working for a long time, it was very inconvenient and frustrating, so I decided to go to the bathroom first.
When I returned, I found a plastic box nearby. If I put the bag and its contents into the box, it would not move around or be hindered by the excess bag. I tried it and found it to be an excellent solution. It was even more convenient to pour the steel rings directly into the box for scooping.
While working, I was thinking. I unconsciously followed the dialectical materialist law. All the troubles I faced when refilling materials revolved around this woven bag. Because it was soft, it had no fixed shape, and the excess bags could block me, entangle the steel rings, and my hands. All other contradictions were governed by this main contradiction. By focusing on this main issue, abandoning the bag and using a box with properties opposite to it, suitable for my work needs, I saved a lot of effort and felt much easier.
Later, it was time to leave work. Half an hour before leaving, all work had to stop, and we had to mop the floor. The factory has made progress in floor cleaning. In the past, we could only use buckets to rinse mops, which was dirty and tiring. Now, it has been changed to dry mops, similar to those used for cars, wide and large. Spraying cleaning oil that can utilize static electricity to吸附灰尘, it was very easy to clean the entire workshop. After finishing, we gathered together, and then it was time to go home.
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So sinister, so reactionary. It reminds me of many of these pre-work “chicken blood” behaviors among service industry employees. When I was young, I thought it was a cult.
I want to ask if your factory has any restrictions on bathroom use, and how they control and oppress workers.
You can start packing up half an hour before work ends, which might be the result of worker struggles. Many factories not only force workers to be vigilant about their phones during work, but even require permission to rest while standing, to ensure workers are continuously working. They also use methods to force overtime, “if the targets are not met, wages will be deducted.” I don’t know how your factory calculates the daily work quota for workers. The above briefly mentions the team leader asking workers to do a few more things each day. Could you elaborate on this?
Thank you very much for your reply, it’s almost more than my main text. I’ll respond to a few of your questions. The factory hasn’t been that strict about these things; there are no clear regulations about using the restroom, and the approach varies among the three team leaders and supervisors.
The strictest one is a female team leader who keeps a close eye on workers and who goes to the restroom. She’s in her early forties, lively and crazy, usually looking like she’s chattering and meddling all the time. Although she’s responsible for water pipe packaging, which often involves the cooperation of three or four people, her gaze is very sharp. She doesn’t often stay close to the workers, but she can tell immediately if someone is taking too long in the restroom. At most, she’ll give a friendly warning; at worst, she’ll gossip behind their backs with a few other workers, making sarcastic remarks all morning. I’ve been caught by her once.
I don’t know about that. I only know that before, we finished work at 5:30, had a one-hour lunch break, and had two days off per month.
Now, we finish at 6:30, have a half-hour lunch break, and work without holidays if not off.
The working hours have increased quite a bit, but the wages have also decreased, and the various bonuses for raises are gone. The management of this factory is actually quite relaxed, probably because it’s too small to have many watchdogs. Keeping watchdogs is also quite costly.
I haven’t studied this myself… The planned output is set by the team leader, who holds a meeting at 4 p.m. to formulate the next day’s production plan. Most of the work has been done before, so they just follow the usual quantities. Sometimes, workers are asked to do a bit more to see if productivity can be further improved. If it’s work they haven’t done before, the initial target is set lower, but workers are encouraged to do as much as possible, and the next day’s plan is based on the amount the workers finish. The goal is to push further and improve productivity.
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I suddenly remembered something. You said you work at a small factory, which may have many illegal and non-compliant practices. You should pay more attention and find opportunities during work to gather sufficient evidence, which could be useful after you leave. Since you mentioned you’re not very familiar with the factory’s rules and regulations, you can ask the workers around you more questions, talk to several people, and observe their attitudes towards these factory rules. First, understand the specific situation clearly, and after grasping the essence, you can better communicate with the workers about the factory’s regulations, building rapport with them. Fenghuo once said that in employment labor, the most spirited and interesting times are when fighting and propagating Marxism. If anything is unclear, you can also ask everyone; we have wage claim experts like jqr, and many comrades who have worked in factories. I myself previously lacked knowledge of Marxism, had little understanding of theory, and was not enthusiastic about communicating with workers, missing many opportunities. For example, my workplace was a piecework factory, and there was a good opportunity to promote the reactionary nature of piecework wages to the workers. But because I didn’t study political economy well, I missed that chance. Later, after discussing with others at night, I understood some things; the workers are more perceptive than I am. They know that “piecework is just rushing against time,” and they pointed out that piece wages are actually time wages. When I talked with her, I mentioned that working desperately is useless; greedy capitalists will still raise wages, and she agreed. During this process, I realized my lack of theoretical knowledge and deepened my understanding of the workers, which made me quite happy.
For example, last time I discussed with a worker’s aunt about being deducted wages for being late. She said the workshop director was also deducted wages for being late, and their wages were deducted double. I thought this was unreasonable because the workshop director sits in the office and earns money easily, while we work hard on the production line for half a day just to earn a few dozen yuan in fines. Is that fair? She agreed with my view, and gradually I became more confident in communicating with my colleagues. Of course, they also have various mistaken ideas. My communication with other workers isn’t always smooth. I often feel that “I regret not studying enough when I need it,” and think I can’t say much. They also often express many submissive views that don’t want to resist factory rules. But it is precisely through using reasonable and understandable methods to promote what we’ve learned about Marxism and to refute their mistaken ideas that we ourselves are strengthened. Our labor reform in the factory becomes more meaningful, not just suffering to accept capitalist exploitation. I hope these experiences can help you a bit in dealing with workers.
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This behavior is disgusting. I had only read in books before that “xx system” would precisely calculate how many seconds a worker needs for a complete action, and then apply it to the assembly line, which leads to the worker needing to hold this part with one hand while paying attention to the next part with the other, often rushing and unable to keep up. I didn’t expect that this factory would actually reach such a disgusting level, directly using this method of treating workers like cattle or horses to drive them, extremely exploiting their energy.
Workers on the production line have already been deprived of all their energy; after work, they just want to sleep, with no time even for short videos for entertainment (I’m not saying short videos are good, but just emphasizing how oppressive the factory is, leaving workers with no time even for such brief rest).
Let alone having time to understand why their situation is so difficult or how to liberate themselves. This extreme exploitation not only drains all the workers’ labor power economically but also makes it difficult for them to escape their enslaved status politically, leaving them unable to learn or fight for their liberation.
To solve these issues, a Marxist party’s leadership is absolutely necessary. The “Zhongwei Revolution” describes this better, though I can’t explain it clearly myself. I believe every oppressed worker who cannot find a way out should read it.
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It is worth celebrating that their conspiracy did not succeed. Because the pipe fitting area is really too dull, there has been no work to do for a long time, and a large number of personnel have been sent away. The remaining few also have no need for a raise. Instead, the less work there is, the more time is spent on cleaning. Because if they work too quickly and finish all the work, they can only take a holiday. But “the factory does not support idlers,” and workers have no money to earn, so they can only go elsewhere. If in the future it suddenly becomes busy again and workers are needed, but everyone is gone, wouldn’t that be just staring with empty eyes? Capitalists want to extract more surplus value from workers but also don’t want workers to leave. They can only be forced to compromise at this perfect “degree.” They really understand dialectics. But I cannot give a detailed Marxist explanation; everyone can help clarify it. I’m glad to see your reply. By the way, just a side note. You used the question mark incorrectly in your second paragraph (click to view analysis).
Actually, there is also no need for a raise, because now the economy is in a slump, and there are basically no orders to work on. The factory itself lacks production needs, and capitalists can only lay off employees or transfer some employees to other positions that are needed, thus saving wages for positions with insufficient work. When there is little work, capitalists transfer workers from low-workload positions to high-workload positions, so workers in the originally low-workload positions have to do more work. Although the output remains unchanged, capitalists also increase the exploitation rate of the original workers, and in this way, they do not need to hire new workers for the high-workload positions.
And as you said
This is a method used by capitalists. Workers are like bricks, moved wherever needed, with no fixed jobs or positions. They may need to learn to do many things, but their wages do not increase at all. Now, many service industries are popular with gig work models, where capitalists flexibly use workers, with flexible hours and flexible work content, entirely based on their own business needs to allocate workers. They only have workers come to work during peak busy times, so capitalists don’t have to hire many formal workers. Workers working a few hours for gig pay earn barely enough to compensate for the labor loss, and the labor intensity is very high, with almost no labor protection for workers. There are also such gig workers in factories. I have seen some young people working in factories for a few hours, and they are not even provided with work clothes or safety shoes.
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I’m also very happy to see you on the forum. You can post more and communicate there, or you can also come out more at People’s Square to talk. Work hard to transform your thoughts, learn theories, and at the same time maintain communication with everyone. I think maintaining communication and engaging in ideological struggle is quite important, so I suggest you visit the forum more often.
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2025/3/1 Focusing on the issue of dealing with workers
Just started work this morning and I was already annoyed enough. It was because of a male worker who is nearly fifty years old. Of course, he also has those generally admirable qualities of the working people, and I admire him, but his hooligan-like habits still make me dislike him. In the past, he called me “Wolong” (卧龙), and another worker of the same age as me was called “Fengchu” (凤雏). Because we lacked work experience, we often messed things up. Today, as soon as he saw me, he shouted loudly: “Wolong! You only ride against traffic, aren’t you afraid of being hit?” I smiled awkwardly and ignored him. I used to have this problem, and he told me once, I admitted it, and I didn’t do it again. Today, I didn’t do it either. So I feel he’s obviously looking for trouble, only seeing a fragment and taking it as my whole, and even taking pleasure in humiliating me. Next to us, a female worker was looking at her phone. He jumped over to her and asked: “Do you agree? Isn’t he just asking to be hit?” He wanted to humiliate me again, act like a hooligan, and make me look so bad in front of others under his intimidation. Because of my weak personality, even if I was angry, I kept it inside, couldn’t think of anything to say, and just responded silently.
Such a domineering worker is really hard to deal with. Because he’s not like a reckless student, who is a complete bastard and best avoided, and he won’t bother you. But this kind of worker, if he is to do proletarian work in the future, will definitely have to deal with many such people. And this worker is not completely bad; he is happy to help when asked, straightforward and honest, without many scheming tricks or hidden fights. He even once主动 (proactively) told me that I could ride in his car on rainy days. He’s also impatient and hot-tempered. In the past, I learned some labor skills from him, and at first, he was quite patient in telling me how to do it. When I did poorly or messed up, he got very angry. He would take over and finish it himself, or ignore me completely, waiting for me to beg him. But besides smoking, drinking, chewing betel nut, he only shows temper and curses like a hooligan. I have never had a real conversation with him; after knowing him for a long time, we are just strangers. He is only good at hanging out with other hooligan-like male workers.
Additionally, let me mention “Fengchu” (凤雏). He is the same age as me, graduated from a technical secondary school, and just started his first year at the factory. This person is too abstract; every time I see him, I feel uncomfortable. If the person I see in him is the same as how others see me, then if I am also stupid enough to be called “Wolong” (卧龙), I can accept myself.
This person used to be widely disliked because he worked too slowly and was too passive, and was sent away by three team leaders, and no one wanted him. An aunt worker complained that she told him a few times but he didn’t understand, always not working, just standing around stupidly, not exerting effort when working, and playing leisurely. Most importantly, he is quite introverted, doesn’t talk at all, and after working for eight or nine months, he doesn’t even know all the names of his coworkers. I found that although he looks shy and honest, he smokes, drinks, and does all that stuff. He claims he loves watching short videos, and can watch for twelve hours during holidays. When he watches videos in front of me, he usually only looks at each for two or three seconds, double clicks, scrolls away, and finishes several in a short time. I asked if he only thinks about these videos at work, and he nodded shyly when he suddenly laughs for no reason. Communicating with this kind of person is too exhausting. He has nothing in his mind, just messing around at work. When I ask about his future plans, he says he will think about it later. After getting to know him, I realized there is a reason why he never interacts with others. He suffered from school bullying, said he was beaten by roommates every day, and he still laughs when recalling it, seeming quite nostalgic. Maybe he never had the chance to interact equally with others before, and only gradually started talking and smiling after coming to the factory. When he first arrived, he looked like a cold zombie with a pale face and never showed any expression.
I really dislike associating with this person. But because I am a rare young person, he loves to cling to me. I don’t want to oppress this sad person, and my attitude isn’t bad, but what he says just makes people annoyed when they hear it. He’s like a little student, always pretending seriously to say hurtful things. I get angry at his vulgar jokes and retaliate with curses. He seems to think I am not that bad and treats it as a joke, then curses back more vulgarly. I know he is just simple-minded and not particularly bad, and I don’t really want to be angry at him. I always end up suppressing and surrendering. I’m really afraid I might develop violent tendencies someday.
Above, I mentioned the two types of people I find hardest to deal with. The common point seems to be that they think hurting others won’t harm anyone. “Kind” jokes, taking pleasure in hurting others. The difference is that one is a domineering hooligan, and the other is a fool who lacks a sense. It doesn’t seem very good to talk about class brothers like this, but besides emotional venting, I don’t know how else to solve it. I hope for everyone’s criticism.
Today I encountered something quite inexplicable. The class monitor hurriedly called me over and told me I had to go on a business trip somewhere. I asked when I was going, and surprisingly she said immediately! (Without even packing!) When would I come back? She hesitated and couldn’t give a clear answer. Even if I left right now, I’d have to notify my family. Nearby, a supervisor two levels above her was a bit dissatisfied and asked, “Is there something wrong at home?” She added that she would be gone for three or four days, and there was a batch of steel pipes with burrs at the opening, so I was to do that work there. She also said not to worry, as there were two other workers there too.
Hearing this, I got angry. It turns out the “business trip” was for after-sales service. Knowing it would take so long, it’s obviously not a good thing—capitalists don’t just give away meat buns for nothing. I had to find out more. I asked a series of questions: Where exactly was I going? How would I eat there? What about accommodation? What time would I start and finish work? I didn’t even ask about wages, allowances, or safety issues; my class monitor was a bit scared and didn’t know either, not expecting me to catch her off guard. “If you don’t want to go, I’ll find someone else,” she said, then called her supervisor.
After a while, she saw me again, as if hoping I’d change my mind, and told me: “Oh, you’re really naive. Our leaders chose you because they value you. Besides, everyone else is going there, and it’s not like they’re trying to sell you off. It’s a rare opportunity for training, think about it again.” I still asked her for detailed information, but she couldn’t provide it, so I left.
At the end of the shift, a coworker auntie also complained to me, saying that such a good opportunity was being wasted, and since others had gone, there was nothing to worry about—just follow everyone else. The leader saw that I had so many concerns, and in the future, they wouldn’t want to use me for other good things.
What I thought was that I seemed like a cow with blindfolds, being led around blindly—how could I not be exhausted? Do these so-called leaders really value “talent”? Will they pick people for training and promotion? I don’t think so. They probably see me as young, unmarried, without burdens, and compared to middle-aged workers, “less trouble.” More importantly, I look dull and stupid, and I just listen to the leaders—easy to deceive, and convenient to control outside. Moreover, they refuse to provide specific information, or maybe they’re afraid to—probably because they don’t see workers as independent people, just like cattle being led everywhere; or maybe the detailed info would scare people away. It’s possible that the situation isn’t as bad as it seems, but you shouldn’t trust the factory blindly and go there in a daze.
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This is just to make you go clean up the mess; probably, once you go, you’ll really be the scapegoat. The capitalists don’t want to take responsibility themselves and send the workers instead.
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Isn’t this just a pure job of wiping people’s buttocks, with normal wages, and staying outside for a long time? Usually, this kind of work is done until finished, and there might not even be a clear start or end time, so he can’t give specific information because the exploitation is too heavy. As for those who think they’ve gained something, let them handle it themselves.
Have you been reading books these days, Sanshui?
Ah, thank you for the reminder, I indeed haven’t read the theory much. I’ve been reading Dawn recently.
Linking with the posts of one-way and SparrowX. They talked about their store manager being also a young person, getting along very well, without any airs of authority. It made me think of the squad leaders and team leaders in my factory.
Maybe because my factory is relatively small, people are more familiar with each other. These squad leaders and team leaders can’t openly oppress workers or uphold rules. They are usually just like ordinary workers, joking around, chatting idly, and seem to get along very harmoniously. The kinder and more approachable they are, the more people are willing to get along with them. These little officials all live in nearby villages, with family backgrounds not much different from the workers. They work the same hours, only earning a few thousand more than the workers. I’ve observed that some rely on connections and gift-giving to get promoted, some are veteran workers with many years of experience, and some have been bought over later.
But, their differences from the workers are huge. Squad leaders don’t have to work with ordinary workers; besides casually strolling around with their hands behind their backs, they just hide in the workshop’s office desk playing on their phones. No matter how tense it gets, even when overtime is needed, they won’t help the workers; they just pretend to do a little bit. In collective labor, team leaders need to work with the workers, but they are responsible for the entire work, often picking fights, finding ways to control, pressure, and punish workers. These squad leaders and team leaders seem very happy and playful with the workers most of the time, but once production needs to increase or control over workers is required, they turn into completely cold-blooded figures. I found that this group of little officials has a set of uniform phrases. “I don’t want to be like this to you either. But if your performance is poor and your work is not good, the leaders will come to me. I am responsible for managing you, so I have to find you. I’m just a middleman, I also want to protect you.” “The factory has its rules; once you come, you have to follow them. If everyone doesn’t take it seriously, how can we manage?”
Almost everyone wants to avoid taking on the responsibility of being the executioner, portraying themselves as tools executing orders without autonomous consciousness. They want to dismiss a few words to cover up their harsh attitude at work. The mistakes are the workers’, and the management and punishment are the superiors’. I am just a worker earning my living like you, so just listen honestly. Why make things difficult for each other?
Yesterday I mentioned refusing to go on a business trip. Today, during the morning meeting, the squad leader subtly criticized me. Using the above set of phrases, basically saying I must follow the leadership’s arrangements without emotional reactions. She’s also experienced, and at a young age, she’s learned to endure and think more. She speaks so nicely, claiming to be good to you, and worried about you getting hurt, but isn’t it just for her convenience to control? None of these officials say anything trustworthy. Even if they seem close and playful, they can’t reveal their true feelings. After all, their work and the workers’ work are fundamentally incompatible. Whatever they think is only from the perspective of maintaining this system.
2025/4/29 The Story of Pang Zhihong
There is a very interesting worker in our factory, almost fifty years old, tall and thin, always squinting his eyes and smiling cheerfully every day. He is also very kind to his coworkers. Other male workers often have a bit of a rogue nature, always saying insulting things to women, even making inappropriate physical advances, but he rarely does that. When I first met him last year, one sentence he said left a deep impression on me: “Your future as young people is full of possibilities.” For convenience, let’s use the pseudonym Pang Zhihong for him here.
On the 29th, I was loading steel pipes onto a truck with Master Pang, and had the chance to chat with him. He was very outgoing and started the conversation first. “Do you have any ideals or goals?” I shook my head and said I didn’t know. My past student life left me with little understanding of the world, and now that I’m working, my life experience is limited to this factory, so the future still seems like a fog. Master Pang smiled and said, “One must have an ideal and a goal. Once you know your direction, you won’t wander around aimlessly or waste effort.” “If you feel confused, I can give you some guidance.” I was very interested and let him speak. He said, “Young people should keep changing jobs until they find what they are good at and like, and then devote themselves to it.” “The two directions I favor are finance and artificial intelligence.” Then he talked a lot about finance and investment. I had noticed before that even after work, Master Pang would sit on his motorcycle looking at his phone without hurry; his phone was usually open to financial bloggers. It turns out he was seizing every moment to study finance and investment content, and he even paid for courses.
“You must go to big cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, or Shenzhen to work hard. Only in such places can you see how real entrepreneurs live, have opportunities to interact with them, and build your own network. You must have your principles; the kind of people you associate with shapes the kind of person you become. Social interaction is a great subject.”
He gave me examples of the successes of Graham, Buffett, and some prominent contemporary Chinese speculative figures, telling me to seize time to learn, grasp opportunities, change my way of thinking, and so on. Master Pang firmly believed in this bourgeois success theory and had indeed put in a lot of effort. He is a thoughtful person who deeply understands the plight of workers under bourgeois society. Facing pressure from capitalist lackeys, he often feels intense anger. He also cares about others, often advising me to think while working, not to blindly do useless tasks, and teaching me how to slack off effectively. However, because of the poison of bourgeois ideology, he cannot see the power of the working class, turning hopes of liberation into personal speculation, pursuing wealth and fame: “You can spend a long time making mistakes, but as long as you succeed once, you won’t have to worry about anything.” I feel very guilty because I have long neglected learning; I neither understand these figures nor history, and I cannot even roughly explain the economic laws of capitalist society. From any perspective, I cannot respond to him. Of course, I can recite some phrases, but without specific detailed analysis, it only makes one seem like a lofty, pedantic intellectual. If my theoretical level cannot even answer the concerns of workers, what propaganda can I talk about? I must study hard.
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