industrial overlord

Chapter 328 Strike
Hearing Xie Yunjuan's complaint, Lin Zhenhua hastily greeted her a few times in a hypocritical manner. She was tired from shopping, so it was considered a work-related injury, right?

"Hey, by the way, Xiaolin, I remember that Hanhua Heavy Industry also has home appliance export business. Are you familiar with American home appliance sellers?" Xie Yunjuan suddenly remembered something and asked Lin Zhenhua.

Lin Zhenhua nodded: "Several home appliances of our company are also exported to the United States, so I have some contacts with the sellers in the United States. What's the matter, sister Xie?"

Xie Yunjuan hesitated for a while, and finally opened her mouth hesitantly: "Xiaolin, that's how it is. This time, a few friends asked me to help them find out if they can buy two refrigerators in the United States and go back. I want to see you Does it matter if you can buy it?"

Lin Zhenhua laughed: "No way, sister Xie, the United States also needs a ticket to buy a refrigerator?"

As a Chinese in that era, I was very used to shortages in the market, and I had to ask someone to find a relationship to buy something that was in short supply.However, Xie Yunjuan came to the United States to find a relationship, which made Lin Zhenhua feel so nonsensical. In the United States, there are only things that cannot be sold, and I have never heard of in-demand products that cannot be bought.

Unexpectedly, Xie Yunjuan told Lin Zhenhua very seriously: "Xiao Lin, you are really right. Buying a refrigerator in the United States requires a ticket."

"No way?" Lin Zhenhua's eyes widened, "Sister Xie, are you kidding me?"

Xie Yunjuan said dissatisfiedly: "You Xiaolin, why are you like this? I'm already my age, and I can still make such jokes with you, a young man? I asked in the electrical store today, and they said that the refrigerator was out of stock."

"No, sister Xie, in my eyes, you will always be young..." Lin Zhenhua was surprised, but he didn't forget to flatter Xie Yunjuan. After saying this, he continued to ask: "Sister Xie , did you go to an electrical appliance store, or did you go to several stores?"

"I've been to quite a few. If you don't believe me, you can ask the foreign student. She also helped me find out. She said it was a rare thing in a century. The refrigerators of several models I was looking for were out of stock. The salesperson told me when they would be available. The stock is still uncertain. But not all the refrigerators are out of stock, there are some made in Brazil, but not the ones made in the United States. I can’t come to the United States and buy a refrigerator made in Brazil, can I?” Xie Yunjuan said.

"How is this possible?" Lin Zhenhua was confused. After thinking for a while, he took out a small phone book from his pocket, turned to a page, then picked up the phone in Xie Yunjuan's room, and dialed a number.

"Hello, is it Gart? Please find Ms. Belinda for me." Lin Zhenhua said on the phone.

Speaking of Belinda, this person has a deep relationship with Lin Zhenhua.A few years ago, Lin Zhenhua was promoting five-blade fans at the Canton Fair. Belinda, the sales director of the American Gart Company, was the first to approach Lin Zhenhua to negotiate.In the following years, Belinda made one or two trips to China almost every year. Among them, she went to Xunyang to visit the home appliance production line of Hanhua Home Furnishing Company, and met Lin Zhenhua several times.

This time when Lin Zhenhua came to the United States, he originally planned to see Belinda after finishing his business. Now that Xie Yunjuan said that the refrigerators in the New York market were out of stock, he couldn't help asking Belinda. What happened.

"Hello, I'm Belinda, who are you?" Belinda's gentle voice came from the phone.

Lin Zhenhua smiled and replied: "Hello, dear Ms. Belinda, I am Lin Zhenhua from China."

"Oh, my dear Lin, why did you call me? Did something important happen?" Belinda asked in surprise, she thought Lin Zhenhua had come to look for her from a long distance across the ocean.Hanhua Home Furnishing Co., Ltd. is still supplying home appliances to Gart. Belinda's first thought is whether there is any problem with the supply.

Lin Zhenhua said: "It's nothing, just because I came to New York, so I called to greet you, I very much hope to have the opportunity to visit you once."

"Great, you're here in New York? Oh, I see, you should be looking for Mr. Ford, right?" Belinda said. She also knew about Lin Zhenhua's friendship with Ford.

Lin Zhenhua briefly told Belinda a few words about his wish to cooperate with Spischer Company, and of course no commercial secrets were involved.After finishing speaking, Lin Zhenhua asked: "Ms. Belinda, I would like to ask you about something strange. Today, a colleague of mine was shopping in New York and found that the local refrigerators in the electrical store in New York were all broken. Goods, is this true?"

When Belinda heard that this was the case, she couldn't help pouring bitter water: "Oh my God, it's over now, and the news of the refrigerator being out of stock is going to China. What your colleagues learned is true Yes, our local refrigerator has been out of stock for more than a month. Because of this incident, our company Gart has also suffered a certain loss. The bill of lading we issued cannot mention the goods, and we have to pay compensation to our customers .”

"How did this happen?" Lin Zhenhua asked, "Is there an economic crisis in the United States?"

Belinda said: "It's not an economic crisis, it's just a strike. The workers of Tiger, the main supplier of refrigerators in our market, went on strike, so the supply of refrigerators was interrupted."

Lin Zhenhua laughed heartlessly: "Why did the workers go on strike, and can a strike last for such a long time?"

Belinda said: "It was the labor union that organized the strike and demanded an increase in wages. But Mr. Hornby, the boss of Tiger Company, firmly disagreed, and the two sides became deadlocked. In the past, the labor union of Tiger Company had organized several They won every strike and won every time. But this time I think old man Hornby was probably irritated, and he didn't give in for more than a month, and we are all waiting to see the result now."

Hearing Belinda call Hornby an "old man", Lin Zhenhua had a thought and asked, "Why, Belinda, are you familiar with Mr. Hornby?"

Belinda smiled and said, "Yes, I know him very well. He pursued me when he was young. We have maintained a good relationship over the years."

Lin Zhenhua said: "Belinda, this is your fault. Since everyone has such a good relationship and something happened to him, why don't you visit him?"

Belinda is also a smart person. She heard some meaning from Lin Zhenhua's words, and asked, "Why, Lin, are you interested in visiting Hornby?"

"Uh, I'm really interested." Lin Zhenhua said, "Belinda, to be honest, I haven't seen what a strike looks like. If it's convenient, I'd like to visit Mr. Hornby and take a look. What is the strike at Tiger's company like?"

"Okay, let me contact Hornby for you, maybe he will be interested in meeting a Chinese friend." Belinda agreed on the phone.

In the early morning of the next day, Belinda drove her car to the Hull Hotel, and Lin Zhenhua boarded her car with Xie Yunjuan.Belinda took the two of them and drove to the Tiger factory in the suburbs of New York.Lin Zhenhua's other partners still went to Spischer's company in Ford's car to conduct some follow-up negotiations. Neither Lin Zhenhua nor Wilson would participate in these negotiations, but were conducted among subordinates.

After driving for more than an hour, Lin Zhenhua and his party entered Tiger Company.This is a large-scale refrigerator manufacturing company. There is a monument facing the gate, with the word "TIGER" written on it, and a pattern like a tiger preying on it. This should be the logo of Tiger Company up.When the car drove into the gate of the company, Lin Zhenhua felt the depression caused by the strike. The roads in the factory area seemed to have been cleaned for a long time, and fallen leaves were piled all over the ground.

Hornby had been notified by Belinda in advance, and was standing under the office building to wait for Lin Zhenhua and his party.This is an old white man with gray hair and red face. He looks to be in his 60s, with reading glasses on his nose and a stubborn look on his face.Seeing him, Lin Zhenhua thought of Mr. Zhu Tiejun. The two old men should have some similarities, that is, they usually look like the old man next door, with a childlike innocence, but once they are provoked, they will be eight-headed. Even a cow can't pull it back.

"Belinda, my goddess, you are finally willing to come and see me." Hornby walked towards Belinda, and a bear hug that was not suitable for children came between the old man and the old lady, and they all laughed at each other .

"Hornby, let me introduce you. This is my Chinese friend named Lin Zhenhua. This is his friend, Ms. Xie." Belinda introduced to Hornby.

Lin Zhenhua stepped forward and shook hands with Hornby.Hornby seemed to want to show his strength in front of Lin Zhenhua, and he exerted a little strength when shaking hands, but Lin Zhenhua was not good at it, so he also exerted some strength in his hands.After the two of them silently wrestled with each other, they both laughed, knowing that each other was a man of temperament.

Hornby brought everyone to his office, poured water for everyone, and then said to Lin Zhenhua and Xie Yunjuan in a self-deprecating manner: "Lin, Xie, I'm sorry to let you see a joke. My workers are on strike, and even I All the secretaries are on strike, so I have to pour water for you myself."

Xie Yunjuan can be regarded as an old foreign trade cadre, but she is still not used to this kind of private visit, and she doesn't know what to say, so she can only smile and say nothing.Lin Zhenhua didn't care much. In his mind, Americans are human beings, and Americans are relatively simple, so they are actually quite easy to deal with.

"Mr. Hornby, I would like to know why your workers went on strike? Is it because you abused them? I think you are a good old man, you shouldn't abuse workers, right?" Lin Zhenhua joked brazenly.

Hornby shook his head: "How is this possible? I have been running this business for 30 years. Who doesn't know that I, Old Man Hornby, cares more about the workers than their fathers. The reason they went on strike was to demand that I Increase wages, this is the fifth time in the past three years they have asked for wage increases. I promised four times, and I don’t want to promise the fifth time.”

"What is the average salary of your workers now?" Lin Zhenhua asked curiously.

"$420 a week, which is a relatively high level in the surrounding factories." Hornby said.

"US$420? It's almost US$1800 a month, right? How much RMB does this cost?" Xie Yunjuan asked Lin Zhenhua in a low voice.She is engaged in foreign trade, and her English level is not bad. She can understand the conversation between Lin Zhenhua and Hornby.

Lin Zhenhua calculated silently in his heart, and replied: "Based on the exchange rate of 3.7, it is about 7000 RMB."

"My god, is earning 7000 yuan a month not enough?" Xie Yunjuan clicked her tongue.

Lin Zhenhua did not continue the discussion with Xie Yunjuan, but turned to Hornby and said, "Mr. Hornby, how do you plan to solve this strike problem?"

Hornby spread his hands and said, "I don't know either. I tried to negotiate with the union to make them understand the company's financial difficulties. But the union was unwilling to talk to me. Their only request was an increase in wages. It's useless to say anything. My annual profit is only a few hundred thousand dollars. If each worker's salary increases by another 20 dollars a week, I will go bankrupt. Now the unions are controlled by young people. Without the thrifty spirit of our older generation, the work is afraid of hardship and tiring, but the requirements for wages are very high."

Belinda sighed with deep empathy: "Isn't it? The young people in our company are also like this now. No matter what they are asked to do, the first thing they ask is how much salary they will give. Things like business trips to Asia, to Now people of my age are needed to do it, and young people are unwilling to do it.”

Lin Zhenhua said: "Mr. Hornby, since the local labor force is so expensive and the workers are hard to talk to, why don't you consider moving the factory to other places?"

"To where?" asked Hornby. "It's not just around New York now, it's all over America. Unless..."

"Unless what?" Lin Zhenhua looked at Hornby and smiled maliciously.

"Why, young man, do you intend to take over our factory?" Hornby asked, and he understood Lin Zhenhua's intention from Lin Zhenhua's expression.

Lin Zhenhua nodded and said, "The old man is really wise. I was just about to make this suggestion to you. Your workers earn $420 a week, while our workers only need $10 a week. Why don't you give it a try?"

"Ten dollars!" exclaimed Hornby exaggeratedly. "I'm a sucker. Are you really talking about workers?"

Lin Zhenhua felt that he was really embarrassed. At present, the average monthly wage level of domestic factories is 80 to 100 yuan. If it is spread over 4 weeks, the weekly salary is only 20 to 25 yuan. Calculated at the exchange rate of 3.7, it is only equivalent to 5 to 7 dollars.Lin Zhenhua said it was $10, which was somewhat exaggerated.

Of course, objectively speaking, the currency values ​​of the two countries are not completely converted according to the exchange rate. At that time, what can be bought with 1 yuan of RMB may not be able to be bought with 1 dollar in the United States.Therefore, the consumption level of Chinese workers is not so different from that of American workers.The price of agricultural products in China is very cheap, and the price of industrial products is relatively high, so Chinese people can still be satisfied in terms of food, but it is more difficult to buy appliances. As for buying cars, that is a fantasy.

"The salary level in China is indeed relatively low." Belinda confirmed, "I think what Lin said should be true."

“It’s no wonder some of my friends are talking about moving the factory to China,” Hornby said. “It’s unbelievably cheap for a $10-a-week worker.”

Lin Zhenhua said: "Mr. Hornby, to tell you the truth, I have a refrigerator production line on hand, which can reach an annual production capacity of 15 units. If necessary, we can expand it to an annual production capacity of 30 units." .If you can provide the main accessories, assemble them in China, and then ship them back to the United States for sale, I think the price of the refrigerator will be much lower than it is now, even if you add the cost of shipping at both ends.”

"I have no doubts about it," Hornby said.As he spoke, he picked up a pencil and calculated on paper.As a senior industry insider, he is well aware of the production cost of refrigerators and shipping costs.After finishing the calculation, he raised his head and asked Lin Zhenhua: "Mr. Lin, if I give you 15 dollars for the assembly of each refrigerator, what do you think?"

When talking on the phone with Belinda the first day, Lin Zhenhua had already made up his mind to cut this processing order.The exchanges between Beijing and Huanggang before departure gave Lin Zhenhua a new understanding of the export processing business.Before that, he always felt that he should make high value-added equipment products, but after talking with Huang Gang, he felt that the labor-intensive export processing industry should not be given up.

China is a country with a large population. There are hundreds of millions of rural laborers who need to be transferred, and there is an urgent need for a large number of jobs.High value-added products should be done, and low value-added products should also be done.Professor Yu Jian's mistake was that he only positioned China as a low value-added industry.But Huang Gang’s point of view is that high-end and low-end take all, and he can’t wait to concentrate all the world’s industries in China. This is the positioning of the legendary “world factory”.

Lin Zhenhua figured this out, and this time he came to the United States with the idea of ​​taking everything from soft to hard.On the first day, he talked with Wilson about the foundry of machine tools at Spischer Company, and today he came to talk with Hornby about the foundry of refrigerators.Since American workers think the wages are low, let’s give up such low-wage jobs to Chinese workers. We don’t despise them.

"Mr. Hornby, the salary you calculated just now is only enough for us to pay the workers. As an operator like you, I also need to consider the shareholders' benefits." Lin Zhenhua said to Hornby with a smile.

"Well, didn't you say just now that your workers only make ten dollars a week?" said Hornby.By his calculations, $10 per refrigerator already includes corporate profits.

"It's just a salary." Lin Zhenhua said, "Ms. Belinda has been to our factory, and I think she will have some say. Our factory is a socialist factory, and we have to pay for all the benefits of workers, including their Housing, medical care, children's education, all of these are extra costs, so..."

　...Although it is an update, it is a chapter of 5000 words after all, which is equivalent to an update of 1.6666, which is about 2 updates.Ask for a monthly pass.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)