We share workers: Chinese factories redeploy staff to weather coronavirus pandemic blow
BEIJING - When the government of the south China city of Zhongshan heard that watchmaker Kam Yuen Group was furloughing more than 100 workers, it brokered a deal to shift the surplus staff to another manufacturer - a growing practice.
"It is better to go to work than being put on leave, even as the hourly wages they receive could be somewhat lower than what they got paid before," said Mr Wang Yaokun, human resources director at Hong Kong-based Kam Yuen, which had already shed 800 to 1,000 jobs in Zhongshan. The pandemic has ravaged the economy and exacerbated imbalances, boosting makers of medical equipment as well as computers and mobiles for the many millions stuck at home even as traditional labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, toys and furniture see weak demand.
Local governments across the export-focused provinces of Guangdong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang have been facilitating similar arrangements in recent months, with the central government endorsing the approach in nationwide guidelines issued in July. Through an employee-sharing programme launched in late May, over 3,000 workers have been redeployed, according to a local official who requested anonymity."Firms were first worried about legal arrangements of work injuries, staff poaching and the protection of commercial secrets, but through government mediation, they managed to reach an agreement," the official said.
Mr Boyang Xue, North Asia analyst at consultancy DuckerFrontier, said ongoing risks of economic"decoupling"between the United States and China, a shrinking labour force and rising costs would drive more flexible work arrangements.
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