Here in Hong Kong we have similar situation, we even have no natural
resources except the sea where our old fishing industry is still running ok.
Our government is declaring service and finance is the direction to take. We
also have high unemployment rate here since the industries were started
moving to China since 15 years ago and there are lots of immigrant from
Mainland China.
I think the unemployment problem is due to Globalization and the company
strategy, they want to keep a good annual result by selling more or increase
the profit margin. The vest improve in communication making business harder
and harder. I have been in electronics manufacturing for around 20 years.
The electronics product price is well known to be the one that will only
drop but not rise, it is due to competition. I'm working in a global company
for lighting product manufacturing. Every year we ask for price reduction
from the suppliers, similar to the case our customers ask for our price
reduction. The company gives out instruction every year for cost reduce
target. I think it is the same for many other industries.
Ok, you know what we can do? One of the way is to increase the efficiency by
using better equipment or work flow that means to reduce the number of
workers or to find a location with cheaper labour. The other one of course
by reduce material cost that means ask for price reduction from our
supplier, ok the labour reduction game start at their side. To keep a good
business we need more customers but now many of them are unemployed what can
we do? Ok, further reduce the price and create more unemployment!
One cannot blame the two big software and product manufacturing locations,
it is the large US, Europe and Japanese companies that make their choice. To
keep a good business status they will and have to move away from their home
country, if not China and India it could be Eastern Europe.
C.H.Ling
----- Original Message -----
From: "John Wheeler" <wheelej@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Welcome to the 'club' George. Oz has the same malaise. Manufacturing
> industry in our country has experienced the acceleration in this problem
for
> many years. I personally suffered as we went into an engineering
> manufacturing business in 1964 which seemed to be the year that started
the
> rot and by 1984 when we sold out, 'Made in Australia' signs were virtually
> non-existant. We were making machine parts for coal mining equipment and
> coal is our country's top export. It seems that governments of affluent
> western countries have decreed that service industries is the direction to
> take. I often think that we ought to have import tariffs based on the
> differential in hourly rates between our country and the exporting one.
And
> you'll note that a lot of the compauies reflected in your little piece are
> large multi-nationals many of which were originally 'born in the USA'.
>
> And that's my two cent's worth.
>
> John (who's now rubbing that sore nerve).
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> [mailto:owner-olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of George M. Anderson
>
> Here's a little ironic commentary on the unemployment blues I just came
> across.
>
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