Raise the stabilization of manufacturing talents to the desired height
Commentator of "China News Weekly" / Yan Xiaofeng
Issued in the 959th issue of China News Weekly on January 10, 2020.8.
"What if young people would rather deliver food than go to the manufacturing industry?" This is the current proposition put forward in the cover report of the magazine's 957th issue, which has aroused widespread resonance from all walks of life.
Once upon a time, working in factories in coastal areas was the first choice for unemployed young people in the inland. Nowadays, delivering courier and food delivery to big cities has become the priority of more and more young people. Why are young people unwilling to enter the factory? Income is the biggest factor affecting the willingness to find employment. However, low wages are not the only reason why the manufacturing industry cannot recruit workers. In addition, there are factors such as high labor intensity, monotonous nature of work, and lack of respect. In contrast, the work of a rider has the advantages of free time and more work, which is very attractive to the younger generation.
From the perspective of personal rights and dignity, the new generation of migrant workers is no longer as hard-working and resentful as their parents, "coming as soon as they are recruited, and leaving as they are". Their frame of reference and expectations are "benchmarks" with their peers in the city. of. In addition, more importantly, there is no future in the manufacturing industry. The time from an apprenticeship to becoming a technical backbone is too long and the cost is too high, and it is increasingly threatened by automated robots, with high risks and high time costs. Who wants to do it?
In reality, the scarcity of senior skilled workers in manufacturing has existed for a long time. On the one hand, companies are suffering from the "skills shortage", and on the other hand, skilled workers with relatively high incomes are still difficult to become the career priority of young people. Although companies are willing to "pay more" to senior technicians in terms of wages and benefits, and are willing to go to the labor market to "dig people" at high prices, the skilled worker positions still do not have long-term appeal.
All sectors of the society call for the importance of vocational and technical education, but the conclusion of the cost estimation for the training of senior skilled workers is: even if the tuition fees of the technical school are fully subsidized by the government, if the migrant workers want to earn back the money earned by the technical school, they must at least be engaged after graduation The bank has worked for 8-10 years. And being a takeaway rider has the advantage of "short and fast": "Go ahead, save some money, and then go back to your hometown to open a small shop."
However, from the overall perspective of national development, the secondary industry is still an important pillar of China’s economy. For a long time to come, it will still rely on the manufacturing industry to bring high added value and high employment to society, especially It is high-end manufacturing. From the perspective of labor distribution, we must face the current manufacturing crisis directly. Recently, entrepreneurs Cao Dewang and Ren Zhengfei have reminded: "Be wary of the de-sinicization of the global industrial chain!" The reasons for this crisis include: the increase in labor costs in China, the reduction of preferential policies, the Western economic suppression on China, and Competition from newly industrialized countries such as Vietnam and India.
In this context, it is certainly their personal choice that young people do not want to enter the factory, but the country must make a strategic choice on a higher level and longer-term goals. Abandoning China's manufacturing and allowing the industrial chain to move out is to lose the foundation of the country and may lose its long-term core competitiveness. On the one hand, we must respect young people’s career choices, and on the other hand, we must also guide them at the policy level, such as tax cuts and benefits (including reductions in social security rates), increased vocational training (including skills training for migrant workers), and reform of the household registration system (Including the point system tilted towards skilled workers) and so on. In short, it is necessary to create favorable conditions for enterprises to allow workers to have opportunities to upgrade their careers while upgrading industries.
It must be noted that the future factories of mankind will be gradually automated and intelligent. Workers are engineers, and salaries should be higher than the average social income level. China should refer to the dual-track education system of Germany, the manufacturing leader, and divide the labor force from junior high school. Technical education and higher education should go on the same side, so that the income and social prestige of senior skilled workers is no less than that of university professors. Only by carrying out such systemic changes can we stabilize manufacturing talents and allow China to move from a large manufacturing country to a strong manufacturing country.
China News Weekly, Issue 29, 2020
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