So much for the working class

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Kobrin, Steve" <KobrinS () wharton upenn edu>
Date: June 22, 2004 9:23:54 AM EDT
To: "'dave () farber net'" <dave () farber net>
Subject: So much for the working class

 The FT reports that the Chinese Communist party wants to extend its 
reach to small and medium-sized companies.  However, it is clear that 
workers no longer represent the vanguard:

Mr Zhang said the party's priority was to sign up managers rather than 
ordinary workers.

"Can you imagine our party could flourish in a company where four of 
the only five party members are cleaners?" he said.

Not exactly a Marxist-Leninist approach.



ASIA-PACIFIC: China's ruling party to lift role in business
By Richard McGregor in Shanghai
Financial Times; Jun 22, 2004

 
 
China's ruling Communist party is pushing to extend its reach into the 
fast-growing entrepreneurial sector, aiming to establish a presence in 
medium-sized local private companies within five years.

Zhang Dahong, a party official in Shanghai, said the department in 
charge of personnel in Beijing had set a target for companies with 50 
or more employees to have a party member, and those with 100 or more 
workers a party committee.

He said Shanghai had set itself the goal of meeting this target within 
three years, 24 months ahead of schedule.

"The presence of the party in [the] private sector is so weak at 
present [in Shanghai] that only 3,000, or 1.1 per cent, of the 280,000 
private companies have set up party committees," he said.

State-owned enterprises, which long dominated the Chinese economy, have 
always had party committees that do everything from handling personnel 
issues to mobilising political campaigns. But the party organisation 
has mostly been a spectator during the rapid growth of the private 
sector in the past five years, leaving it sidelined by the most dynamic 
new force in China.

By tapping into private companies, the party gets valuable income from 
fees, and access to retirement jobs for elderly officials, and extends 
its political tentacles.

"In time of breaking events, such as Sars (the severe acute respiratory 
virus) and [the campaign against the banned religious group] Falun 
Gong, we can help to contain the crisis, given our presence penetrates 
into every unit of society," said Mr Zhang.

It is not clear, however, what impact if any the party's presence would 
have on day-to-day decision-making in Chinese private companies, and 
there are no set rules for how its officials should operate.

Mr Zhang said the party's priority was to sign up managers rather than 
ordinary workers.

"Can you imagine our party could flourish in a company where four of 
the only five party members are cleaners?" he said.

Gu Zengguang, a former Shanghai official recruited to organise the 
party in the Junyao group, which has interests in dairy, aviation and 
real estate, said 80 per cent of its 120 members were managers.

"As long as someone is talented enough, we invite them to join, but 
it's true our preference now is mid-level managers," he said.

In Shanghai, where the private sector is relatively weak, the party may 
find it relatively easy to penetrate private companies.

Rival party offices in Shanghai are already competing to sign up 
private companies.

But the job is likely to be much harder in the south, especially in 
places such as Shenzhen, where private companies have traditionally 
resisted the establishment of party committees.

The party has nearly 70m members in China.
 
 
(c)Copyright The Financial Times Ltd
 
 

 

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