Editor’s note: The following excerpt was translated from a blog posted by Economic Weekly on ifeng.com. While the world has been informed of the horrific working conditions that have allegedly led to dozens of suicides at Foxconn factories in China, very few articles offer a glimpse into the social lives of these youngsters. Do they all, as many media have suggested, really live like virtual slaves working long hours and spending the rest of the time sleeping? Or is there a life beyond the walls of the factories that make your iphones?

This is probably the saddest disco you’ve ever seen: a couple of lights flicker to the rhythm of music, the outer wall is made of concrete and iron railing, making the whole space look like a cage and the so-called ‘dance floor’ is just the unused space surrounding a skating rink. Bopping on the stage aren’t beautiful ladies like in other clubs, but several dozen young, blurry-eyed men dancing awkwardly; and instead of provocatively dressed bar maids shuttling between the seating area and the bar, a bunch of elderly red-armband-wearing security men work the floor. But the several hundred revelers at the “Nightingale Disco” in the basement of Guanlan Foxconn Square on August 25, 2013 don’t seem to care.

A village near the north gate of the Foxconn factory compound in Guanlan, Shenzhen. Factory workers are the main source of business here.

 Welcome to Foxconn, the world’s biggest electronics manufacturer

The Foxconn factory zone has a population of over 200,000 people, the same size as a county-level city. But the difference between this place and a regular city is that here you’ll hardly see any middle-aged or elderly people. Most people are around 20. During its heyday, the local per capita income was comparable to the country’s top 100 counties, but now Guanlan is a concentration of internet cafes, KTV, cell phone stores, arcades, private clubs, and Mahjong and massage parlors.

In the past 30 years, under the strategic management and direction of owner Terry Guo, Foxconn has become the undisputed world leader in the manufacture of electronics. Within the three square kilometer perimeter, Apple’s iPads and iPhones, Dell’s computers, Xiaomi’s cell phones and Wii game consoles are being churned out. For the past few years, the company has been growing at a rate of 50% or above, with last year’s earnings amounting to 117.5 billion USD.

You’ve probably already heard the following facts: Foxconn in Shenzhen has its own television station, fire brigade, and hospital. It has its own brand coffee and even Foxconn branded sewer lids. In the Longhua factory compound in Shenzhen, over ten tons of rice are consumed every day at lunch, over 3000 new staff are hired on a daily basis, and over 1000 security guards are employed to maintain order.

However, Terry Guo’s low cost achievements come with a price: in recent years the tycoon’s name has been smeared with the term “sweatshop”. With revelations about Apple’s high-intensity labor, the 12 suicides in 2012 and the increased frequency of strikes and protests, Foxconn is a controversial company.

Life inside the factory

“My work can be replaced by a machine. Working here for a year or two years is all the same; I haven’t gained any experience. I stand at a station all day. After work I head out with a couple of people for fresh air”. Ma Shi is an ordinary worker on the production line of Foxconn in Zhengzhou. He’s been working here for two years already and despite only being 19, he’s considered an oldie.

At Foxconn in Shenzhen, each person is subjected to a strict work schedule. Work begins at 8:30 sharp every morning; staff must arrive at their stations by 8:15. Late arrivals are deducted pay. To ensure maximum productivity, lunch time is meticulously controlled; the longest anyone gets off is one hour and breaks are staggered between workshops to avoid long queues and wasting time at the canteen.

During work hours, workers must apply to the line leader for permission to go to the toilet. Workers then have a ten minute window to relieve themselves. If they take longer than ten minutes, they’ll be disciplined and criticized by the line leader. “Some of the line leaders are not good people”, said Ma Shi, who witnessed a harsh scolding of a new worker first hand. “Can you or can you not do it, you ***. If you can’t do it, f**k off!” were the words he recalls. “If you’re too honest and simple, you’ll even get physically beaten here,” says Ma.

The need for entertainment

Despite Nightingdale Disco’s simple and crude aesthetics, business is red hot. For Foxconn workers the nightlife spot offers a place to vent and is cheap. Twenty year old Xiao Hui’s most common activity is going to the Nightingdale Disco. “It costs 10 Kuai to get in – a cheap price; and I don’t buy any alcohol in there. All I do is dance.” Xiao Hui loves the feeling he gets when he comes out of the disco: “My whole body feels overcome by the music. My thoughts stop spinning and I feel great.”

Xiao Hui went to Foxconn in Shenzhen in early 2011 despite his parents’ protests. “At the time I heard that you can earn over 3000 RMB a month. I didn’t care if someone jumped off a building or not. I didn’t put too much thought into it and just decided to come here with a friend from my village. If I stayed to help my parents with farming, the whole family would have earned less in a year than what I would make in three or four months at Foxconn.”

After he arrived at Foxconn, Xiao Hui – who as a kid never got more than 20 RMB pocket money – suddenly felt like a “city person”. But very soon, the monotonous work, the Foxconn machinery and the loneliness he felt from leaving home devoured any happiness he might have felt from getting paid. At Foxconn, most people are surrounded by a feeling of dullness.

Finding release

According to incomplete statistics, over 100,000 Foxconn workers live in Nangang Village near the Zhengzhou factory. At 20:00 on weekends the workers come flooding out of the factory compound. They are transformed. Brimming with excitement and energy they head off to release some pressure, and find some fun.  

Like in Shenzhen, the entertainment here comes in the form of cheap excitement. Each evening from 20:00-22:00, all the beer and barbecue stalls are filled with people and all private hostels are fully booked; the streets groan under the weight of the crowds. Sometimes there’s a middle-aged man from Henan doing a skit, other times women dress up in unusual outfits and do a dance. Besides a disco, entertainment options include playing pool for 5 RMB an hour or catching a flick in a cinema vehicle. KTV is always a popular choice. At outdoor karaoke, you can select one song for 5 RMB. The most popular songs by far are those with lyrics about friendship or troubled youth. If 5 RMB is too much you can head to a temporary prefab building where one song costs 2 RMB.

The least costly form of nightlife is “nesting” in the dorm. For A Yu, life consists of working, eating, sleeping, playing on the computer, listening to songs and watching movies. A Yu comes from the same village as Xiao Hui in Jiangxi Province. A Yu believes that his life at Foxconn represents the majority of basic workers there. “It’s boring but that’s okay. At least I get to earn money.” Unwilling to reveal his income, he lists out all the different types of expenditure he incurs: social security, housing fees, and food; all these amount to 600 RMB. But A Yu doesn’t live in the factory dorm and therefore has extra fees which he claims add up to another 400 RMB bringing his monthly expenditure to 1000 RMB.

Dating at Foxconn

Most people work 8:00-21:00 days to earn extra overtime pay. This only leaves the weekend nights for couples to connect. “Many people book a hotel room early in the week. Those who book late won’t get rooms.” says the owner of “Orange Hotel” in Yukang New Town.

Many workers don’t have girlfriends. Due to the high-turnover rate of staff, most people act like short-term visitors and men and women appear indifferent towards each other. Ma Shi says he doesn’t want to find a girlfriend because they’re trouble so instead – just like many others like him – he opts for a “quick fix”. According to Ma Shi, some of the female staff members work as prostitutes on the side. “Some women find overtime too tiring so they go out to find extra income. This is very common.”

Other journalists have confirmed similar claims by workers in Zhengzhou and Shenzhen and most staff members seem to think of this phenomenon as something normal. “These girls find business easily. You just join a Foxconn QQ group and add your contact details and a place to meet. You can even book a hotel room, the location of which you decide yourself. This is much safer that the massage parlors as they’re all factory workers and just doing it for an extra bit of income. A lot of people I know did this before and no-one ever encountered any problems,” says Ma Shi.

The Economic Weekly journalist met one female worker called Minmin to talk about her side job selling sex. According to Minmin, Foxconn girls who sell their bodies on the side aren’t in the minority. She got into the business when her hopes of earning 4000 RMB a month were dashed by her reluctance to work overtime, leading to a mere 2000 RMB salary. “Earning money quickly while you’re young is the most important thing,” says Minmin. When asked whether she has any regrets, Minmin answered: “Yes, I do. I regret not coming here earlier to do my side job.”

 

Source: ifeng.com

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