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Photo by Zhao Liyun

Securities Times reporter Zhao Liyun

As BYD's largest contiguous vehicle production base, Zhengzhou BYD recently officially announced the achievement of "weekly sales of over 10,000 units" for its new model Song L DM-i.

More than half a month ago, Foxconn, which has been deeply rooted in Henan for many years, announced that it would build a new business headquarters in Zhengzhou to create a global high-end manufacturing industry chain and strategic emerging industry ecosystem.

"Chain leader" companies have increased their production capacity and output in Henan, and their demand for labor has also increased accordingly.

In the past, with the peak period of iPhone product shipments, Zhengzhou Foxconn ushered in the peak season from August to December every year. At the beginning of July this year, the news that "the peak season came early and the labor price soared" spread here, constantly attracting job seekers to apply.

After the new models were launched and received a large number of orders, in August, Zhengzhou BYD also announced the launch of its second large-scale recruitment of the year, with the direct recruitment scale reaching 4,000 people in a single month, and the highest job salary could reach 9,000 yuan/month.

The surge in orders has led to a demand for workers that exceeds expectations

Although it is more than an hour's drive from the center of Zhengzhou and there are still many plots of land waiting to be built in the surrounding area, on August 13, when a Securities Times reporter drove into the road section around the BYD Zhengzhou factory located in the Zhengzhou Airport Economic Comprehensive Experimental Zone, he was unexpectedly stuck in a traffic jam.

Just after 10 a.m., the simple parking lot near BYD Recruitment Center in Zhengzhou was full. Cars were parked side by side on both sides of the surrounding roads, and several illegally parked cars were being towed away by the traffic control department. The reporter followed the long line of slowly moving trucks, squeezed through the crowded lanes occupied by temporarily parked vehicles, and drove around for 20 minutes, but still found it difficult to "land".

"We are recruiting workers. All the cars parked nearby are from other places. Many people have come here these days." Opposite the gate of BYD Recruitment Center is a row of bungalows, which operate more than a dozen restaurants and shops. A shop owner told reporters that recently from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. every day is the time when ordinary operators come to the factory to apply for jobs. His own shop opens early to welcome customers and business is good.

A job seeker dragging a suitcase said that according to the notice he received after registering, he needed to arrive at the factory in the morning, and after an interview and physical examination, he would start work and be assigned a dormitory on the same day.

According to the recruitment information released by BYD Zhengzhou in early August, the Zhengzhou Port Area needs to recruit 2,900 operators and 1,100 technicians, and Anyang Wadian and Jinan also have another 2,700 job requirements, with a total recruitment scale of 6,700 people. Among them, the Zhengzhou Park is undoubtedly the largest employer.

"After BYD's new model Song L DM-i was released in July this year, the order volume was very large. As the main production site of this model, Zhengzhou BYD is facing a rapid increase in production in August. Not only in August, but also in the following September and even October, the production of the entire Zhengzhou will increase exponentially, and the demand for recruitment in the Zhengzhou Park will be greater than in previous years." Zhengzhou BYD's human resources manager said when participating in a recruitment live broadcast event of Henan local media. According to him, not only the orders for new models have surged, but the recent price reduction of an old model has also received good market feedback, and orders have increased significantly. The factory also needs to increase the number of recruits to complete the delivery task as soon as possible.

Most of the nearly 4,000 employees that BYD Zhengzhou plans to recruit will work in the 11th Division. The HR manager of the 11th Division in Xizheng also introduced in the live broadcast that the work of this division involves multiple processes of automobile production, including stamping and welding, painting, assembly, and quality inspection after assembly, and finally delivery to the market. Currently, the division has a large demand for front-line operators, whose main job is to use auxiliary equipment for simple assembly of products. They must be at least 18 years old and have a junior high school education or above.

"We have evaluated that the biggest constraint to increasing production is the lack of manpower." He said that the 11th Division currently needs to recruit 2,000 to 2,500 operators in August alone, and it is expected that at least 3,000 more will be needed next month. Production will increase rapidly in the coming months.

Zhengzhou BYD also provides employees with good salary and benefits.

According to reports, in addition to providing meal allowances and accommodation, Zhengzhou BYD also pays five insurances and one fund for grassroots employees. If an operator works 10 hours a day, the total monthly salary and bonus before tax can reach about 7,000 yuan, and the monthly income of skilled positions such as forklifts and fitters can reach more than 10,000 yuan.

Peak season ahead of schedule

Recruitment prices continue to rise

Also in Zhengzhou Airport Economic Zone, Foxconn Zhengzhou ushered in its peak recruitment season in August.

"The peak season started early this year, and the current price is the highest of the year!" In response to job seekers' questions about the arrival of the peak recruitment season, the official recruitment WeChat public account of Foxconn in Zhengzhou recently gave this reply in the message area, and reminded that "the peak season recruitment started early in July, so it will end earlier. If you plan to join the company, please hurry up, don't wait and see, and don't blindly wait for price increases."

It is not difficult to see from the recruitment information released by the above-mentioned public account that the overall labor price of Foxconn in Zhengzhou has been on an upward trend in recent months, and the recruitment conditions have been continuously relaxed.

In May this year, the minimum hourly wage for hourly workers recruited by Foxconn in Zhengzhou was 20.5 yuan, and the minimum rebate for rebate workers (who need to clock in for 90 days) was 4,000 yuan.

By early July, the recruitment information clearly stated that "peak season recruitment will start early". The hourly wage for high-paid hourly workers is 23.5 yuan to 25 yuan (differentiating between new and old employees and departments), while workers who receive rebates can get up to 7,500 yuan in rebates. The cumulative salary after three months of employment can reach 17,000 yuan to 21,000 yuan.

However, in July, Foxconn in Zhengzhou made it clear that it would not accept students, whether they were hourly workers or paid workers.

"Starting from August, they have gradually stopped blocking students. Initially, they said that only those over 22 years old would not be required to have a non-student certificate, but now as long as the age is right, it's fine." In front of the Foxconn recruitment center in Zhengzhou, a person waiting to fill out the application form to join the company told the Securities Times reporter that the current entry threshold of Foxconn in Zhengzhou is low, and some of his peers who are familiar with him have successfully entered the factory recently. He also plans to try out the "big factory" life for a short period of time during the summer vacation.

According to the latest recruitment information released by Foxconn Zhengzhou, both the Foxconn A business group located in Zhengzhou Airport Economic Zone and the Bada Street factory in Zhengzhou Economic Development Zone currently only require candidates between the ages of 18 and 48. The A business group requires candidates with a junior high school degree or above, and does not accept candidates with large-area cigarette scars or tattoos.

In terms of salary, subsidies have been increased again recently. Hourly workers and paid workers in Business Group A can enjoy additional subsidies of 200 to 500 yuan upon joining. In addition to hourly wages, high-paid hourly workers can also receive a 200 yuan car allowance after working for a full month. Hourly workers can get up to 250 yuan for 10 hours a day, and 5,500 to 7,000 yuan a month.

However, this "favorable" employment offer has a time limit. Foxconn Zhengzhou has made it clear that the high price will last until October 31, and starting from November 1, wages will be calculated based on base salary and overtime pay.

"It is indeed the peak of employment now. Many new people come into the factory every day, but many leave because they are not satisfied with the work. Therefore, ordinary employees cannot count the total number of people who come into the factory." Li Qiang (pseudonym), who has resigned from Foxconn in Zhengzhou, told the Securities Times reporter that he was recruited into the factory as a return fee worker and was assigned to the night shift after entering the factory. In the end, he left voluntarily after only working for two weeks, and naturally he did not get the return fee.

Perhaps in order to accommodate the large number of employees recruited during the peak season, Foxconn recently completed a three-year upgrade and renovation project for its employee dormitories in Zhengzhou Airport Economic Zone.

It is understood that the dormitory upgrade cost about 600 million yuan. Not only did the dormitory change from 8-person rooms to 6-person rooms, reducing the density of accommodation, but also the furniture, appliances and public facilities were fully updated. New storage facilities such as hangers, shoe racks and luggage racks were added to the rooms, and the air conditioners and water heaters were also replaced.

"Chain Master" increases investment in Henan

In the list of "chain leader" enterprises in the advanced manufacturing industry chain released by Zhengzhou City in 2023, Hon Fujin Precision Electronics (Zhengzhou) Co., Ltd. (Foxconn Zhengzhou) is among them.

Since the Foxconn factory was established in Zhengzhou Airport Economic Zone in 2010, not only has the "Apple supply chain" been gradually built here, but it has also expanded from single mobile phone manufacturing to back-end modules, semiconductors, integrated circuits, new displays and other related industries, forming an electronic information industry cluster.

Just recently, Foxconn, as the "chain leader", announced that it will increase its layout in Henan.

According to an announcement released by Hon Hai in late July this year, its subsidiary Foxconn Technology Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the Henan Provincial Government. Foxconn will give full play to its core competitiveness in the field of smart manufacturing, as well as its advantages in global technology reserves and industrial chain resources, to accelerate the implementation of electric vehicle, energy storage battery, digital health and robot industries, focus on Henan, and build a global high-end manufacturing industry chain and strategic emerging industry ecosystem.

Also as a "chain leader" enterprise, Zhengzhou BYD took less than three years from signing the contract to formal production and then to large-scale mass production, achieving "accelerated" development in Henan.

According to the full-year report card released by Zhengzhou BYD, in 2023, the Zhengzhou BYD segment achieved an output value of 33.47 billion yuan, produced more than 200,000 vehicles, and produced 7GWh of power batteries and energy storage.

According to data released by the Henan Automobile Industry Association, Zhengzhou BYD's production and sales volume in the first half of 2024 reached 10 times that of the same period last year, with strong development momentum.

At present, the Zhengzhou Airport Economic Comprehensive Experimental Zone has basically formed a new energy vehicle industry chain led by BYD. By the end of 2023, Henan will have more than 600 automobile and parts companies above designated size, including 17 new energy vehicle manufacturers, basically forming a new energy vehicle industry chain from raw materials to core parts, and then to complete vehicles, supporting equipment, and the Internet of Things.

"Henan has not only optimized its industrial structure and improved the connotation and momentum of high-quality development by attracting investment and introducing high-end manufacturing enterprises, but also successfully boosted employment, promoted the development of the labor and talent markets, and formed a new situation of a virtuous cycle of coordinated development of industry, employment and consumption." Song Xiangqing, president of the Henan Society of Commercial Economics, believes that Henan has taken effective measures to boost the recovery of the employment market by deploying high-end manufacturing. From the supply side of jobs, Henan has driven the development of upstream and downstream companies and created a large number of employment opportunities by introducing leading companies such as BYD and Foxconn, and cultivating and strengthening "chain leader" companies such as Luoyang Molybdenum and Muyuan Foodstuff.

At the same time, by driving the high-end, intelligent and green development of enterprises through digital transformation, Henan has accelerated the transformation of development methods of key industrial chain groups, improved the allocation efficiency of development factors, and further promoted employment growth.

In addition, Henan has strengthened carrier support by selecting and identifying provincial advanced manufacturing clusters and characteristic industrial clusters of small and medium-sized enterprises, attracted high-end factors to converge on key industrial chain clusters, and provided more platforms and opportunities for employment.