Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 655 Job Fair

No matter what kind of reform it is, it will never be smooth sailing at the beginning.

This time is no exception.

The discussions that had been going on in the newspapers for months were just an appetizer.

Even if one side wins, it doesn't mean the other side is completely convinced.

From any perspective, there are always people who are unwilling to change, and such people often occupy leadership positions and can dominate a region, or at least their own small territory.

At this moment, the importance of the "first uprising" is most evident.

The so-called "first to take sides" means being the first to choose a side, and the advantages and disadvantages are obvious.

If they succeed, they will become the backbone of society; if they fail, they will be the first to suffer.

Chen Fan hadn't expected that Secretary Qian, who had only been in office for a few years, would have such awareness and resolve.

What's even more remarkable is that, under his leadership, the Nanhu Commune united as one, forming a stark contrast to the relative conservatism of the county town.

Perhaps it was also related to the fact that the side business company in Lujiawan was ultimately a commune or brigade enterprise?
But in any case, having this person in Nanhu is entirely beneficial to the development of Lujiawan.

An agreement was reached, but no action was taken.

Even if Secretary Yang and his team are anxious, they can still wait more than a month.

However, the news that the Lujiawan Garment Factory and Food Factory were recruiting workers was released early on.

Normally, enterprises run by production teams are only for members of the village to work in, and cannot recruit workers from outside the village; otherwise, what kind of sideline business would it be?

But how to say it.

Since it's a "community/brigade unit," does that mean that all members of the entire commune can enter?

Anyway, it didn't explicitly say that a sideline unit of a certain production team is not allowed to recruit members of the commune from outside the production team, right?

Another point is that in this era, people generally take precedence over rules, and rules take precedence over laws.

When there are no explicit regulations, the words of the person in charge of management shall be considered regulations.

In short, the current trend is simply the opposite of what happened a few years ago.

If we keep going at this pace, there won't be any problems.

For example, when Huaxi Village set up a factory, the local government reported the situation to Mr. Li, who commented at the time: "This is a place of hope for the countryside."

Thanks to this statement, Huaxi Village survived for more than a decade and accumulated a large amount of initial capital. In the 80s, it finally took off.

However, this good fortune is limited to Huaxi Village.

In most other places, it's difficult to even develop a side business, let alone set up a factory. Why?
Because that's the inevitable trend.

Therefore, even Mr. Li's words cannot be used as a reference!

Same now.

As long as it's not too excessive, the commune leaders in the Nanhu Commune area can make decisions.

If that's not enough, then add Lujiawan too. Who in the entire commune would dare to say no?
Even the most cautious county towns would turn a blind eye.

It was under these circumstances that the recruitment process in Lujiawan slowly began.

……

November 8th, the eighth day of the tenth lunar month, Wednesday, the Beginning of Winter.

This day marks the official start of winter.

The day of Lidong (the Beginning of Winter) is usually accompanied by a drop in temperature, a cold wave, and rainy weather; in the north, it may even snow.

Fortunately, Nanhu Commune is located in the Jiangnan region, so it hasn't snowed yet, and the temperature is around 20 degrees Celsius. Even though it rained a little today, a thick jacket is enough, and you don't even need an umbrella.

At the border between Nanhu Commune and Ganjiacun, which is the gathering place of rural markets, there were quite a few people here even though it was not Sunday and there was no market day.

On the large open space right next to the lake, more than two thousand people lined up in more than a dozen rows, with men and women separated... well, occasionally a few women were mixed in with the men's rows, and one or two men were mixed in with the women's rows.

It wasn't that they lined up in the wrong place, but rather that the positions they chose were so "gender-segregated".

Today is the "job fair" of Lujiawan Side Business Company. Job fairs are a bit of a rarity. Most people understand what they mean, but they have never seen one before, and very few have even heard of them.

So in addition to those applying for jobs, there were countless onlookers, three or four layers deep, gathered around the venue.

A middle-aged man in his fifties tidied his thinning hair and said boastfully, "I've also participated in job fairs. Back then, right after the founding of the People's Republic of China, several large factories under the local government wanted to expand, but they didn't have enough workers, so they publicly recruited people."

I happened to be at the prefectural committee office at the time, so I went over to see what was going on. The scene was actually nothing special, pretty much the same as today.

Pointing to the cordoned-off recruitment area, he said, "It's just like today. Each company sets up a table, and there's a big sign under the table that says what kind of people they're recruiting, what the requirements are, and if you think you're qualified, you can go over and apply."

Anyone with experience could almost always be hired. I was just watching for fun back then; I never thought about working for the prefectural committee. Think about it, if I went to work for the prefectural committee, wouldn't I have to move there, get married, and settle down? What would happen to my parents back home?
So I won't go. Otherwise, I'm now a member of the prefectural committee in the city, and the conditions there are completely different from those in the commune..."

A group of people around him listened to his stories and boasting, while many others were discussing them animatedly.

An older woman pulled her friend aside and asked, "Don't you know how to sew? Why don't you give it a try?"

The woman in her thirties next to her had a hint of expectation in her eyes, but her face showed disdain. Even an actress couldn't pull off that expression. Hearing her friend's words, she said without thinking, "Forget it, my family doesn't need those few dollars."

My parents-in-law's husband both have regular jobs. Although their salaries aren't as high as those from their side businesses, they have stable incomes regardless of circumstances, and they'll have pensions when they get old.

Unlike their commune and brigade units, which offer absolutely no job security, even if they make a lot of money this year, who knows if they'll have any next year?

Someone nearby chimed in, "If there's something to earn this year, then earn it this year; if not, then we'll see next year." The woman still shook her head. "Forget it. People in our town have food ration coupons and wages, unlike those in the countryside who depend on the weather for their livelihood. Let's give them the opportunity."

Someone nearby said, "If you ask me, what rural towns are they? Aren't they all part of the same commune?"

Now, many students are graduating, but the commune can't arrange jobs for them. There are only a few units in the town. Last year, they said that there were too many people and too few jobs, so they would reduce the number of people and close down some poorly performing factories.

That sounds so scary. Even though it's not closed this year, who knows if it will be closed next year?

On the contrary, Lujiawan has developed quite well in the past two years. Through Teacher Chen, they have also established connections with several large units of the prefectural committee. Teacher Chen is also a famous writer working in the province. As long as Teacher Chen doesn't give up, I don't think Lujiawan will collapse. It's better to let the younger generation of the family go there to give it a try, so they don't just idle around all day. In the long run, they'll become useless."

People outside the venue were chattering away, saying all sorts of things. Inside the venue, the noise was just as loud; you had to shout to be heard.

In front of a stall that read "Luwan Garment Factory", 28-year-old Huang Xiuying held a resume printed on mimeograph paper, looked at the middle-aged man who pulled out a stool and sat down, and said politely, "Master Hong, judging from your qualifications, you have been working as an apprentice since you were 12 years old and have been making clothes for 36 years. That's a long time."

However, you've always been making clothes for people in the team; have you ever gone outside to make clothes for department stores?

Master Hong coughed twice, embarrassed, and rested his hands on his thighs, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

However, the desire to find a job ultimately prevailed over pride, and she mustered up the courage to say, "I apprenticed to a master in the old society and became a master in the 1950s. I worked with my master in Yunhu for several years, and I have been making clothes for 36 years now... Later, I was sent back to the countryside, and it has been about 20 years since then."

As for department stores, I used to work there in my younger days. Although I haven't done it for over twenty years, I'm sure I could do it without any problems. I've been doing it since I was a child..."

After listening carefully to his self-introduction, Huang Xiuying marked a checkmark on the form and then smiled and said, "Master Hong, you've passed my test. Please come again tomorrow. The next round of interviews will be in our garment factory's training class. We'll see your true abilities then."

Upon hearing this, Master Hong was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly, "Okay, okay, I'll definitely be there tomorrow, I'll definitely be there."

Not far away, Secretary Yang nodded in satisfaction at Master Hong, who looked to be in his 5s or 60s but was actually only 48. He raised the cigarette in his hand high and smiled at Captain Zhang, saying, "We need to recruit more experienced masters like this. They are very capable and can be used as soon as they arrive. They are much better than apprentices."

Zhang Changjiang nodded repeatedly in agreement, "Yes, I think so too."

He paused for a moment, then laughed and said, "It's all thanks to Xiao Chen's idea that this job fair came about. If it were like before, where each unit, production team, and neighborhood committee had to submit their names, we wouldn't even know what kind of people we were recruiting, let alone find experienced workers like this!"

If Chen Fan were here, he would definitely be both amused and exasperated.

He's 48 years old and has spent half his life farming. It's good enough if his skills haven't become rusty. How much better can he be?
The garment factory needs to be developed in the long term, especially since Chen Fan built it according to the standards of a modern factory, and the sewing machines used are all industrial sewing machines customized by Yunhu Machinery Factory.

Do those experienced craftsmen know how to use it?!
However, he's not there now, so thinking about it is pointless.

Of course, he didn't completely abandon the job. Before the job fair, he repeatedly told Liu Lu that the recruitment should focus on young women, especially those with a basic education, and secondarily on experienced veterans.

Liu Lu also gave Huang Xiuying and the others the same instructions.

Well, I hope it will have a good outcome.

So if Chen Fan isn't here, what is he doing?

At that moment, he was squatting beside the irrigation canal in Lujiawan, smoking and watching people catch turtles.

……

The irrigation canals of Lujiawan consist of two main canals, each about 8 meters wide, running north-south on either side of the main road, and 12 auxiliary canals, each about 4 meters wide, running horizontally through 12 smaller teams. From these auxiliary canals, smaller canals, each only one meter wide, extend north and south, thus covering more than 3000 to nearly 4000 mu of paddy fields.

According to the old custom, fish are always raised wherever there is water.

Although it's not like intensive fish farming in a pond, but rather free-range farming where only fish fry are released and no feeding is provided, there are still quite a few fish to be caught each year.

In the past, we would simply drain the water from the irrigation canals of all sizes, catch the fish, and then pump water from the river to fill the main canal about halfway. Then, in the spring, when it was time for spring plowing, we would completely fill the canals.

But ever since Chen Fan brought the turtles, an extra step has been added to the process: digging up the turtles!
Chen Fan exhaled a smoke ring, looked at Captain Yang who was digging for turtles in the mud with a wooden shovel, and said, "You dug up so many turtles last year, and they haven't become extinct yet?"

Without looking up, Captain Yang gripped the wooden handle with both hands, gently brushed away the layer of silt on the surface, and then used a wooden shovel to pick out a turtle the size of a bowl, which he then tossed in front of Chen Fan.

Then he looked up and laughed, "Look, are they extinct yet?"

Chen Fan stuck his butt out and moved his feet back half a foot, accurately avoiding the mud that was thrown up. He looked at the turtle in front of him, smacked his lips, and said, "This thing needs two pounds of potatoes to make a stew."

"It's good enough that it's this big, why are you still being picky?"

Accountant Liu, who was not far away, took a breath while holding a wooden shovel. He looked up at Chen Fan and laughed, "Everyone dug up most of it last year. Even if there are some left that slipped through the net, they are very few. It's not that easy to find them."

These turtles were collected from several other production teams. We will put the turtles in after the fish fry grow a little bigger, so that we won't lose too many fish fry and can keep the turtles coming in.

But if you want a big one, then forget about it.

Chen Fan nodded in realization, "I was wondering why there were still so many turtles. It turns out you released fish fry."

Captain Yang, leaning on his wooden shovel, walked ashore and sat down on the slope. He beckoned to Chen Fan with his fingers, took a cigarette from him, lit it on Chen Fan's pipe, and exhaled a long breath. Just then, he heard Chen Fan's words and said, "No hunting in spring, only hunting big fish, and no draining the pond to catch all the fish. These are all rules left by our ancestors."

Last year, the turtle catching was so severe that we often saw them sunbathing by the water, but this spring we haven't seen many. We knew something was wrong, so we bought some baby turtles to raise in the water.

Chen Fan raised an eyebrow, his face full of smiles.

Two years ago, I saw them digging for soft-shelled turtles, not even letting go of tiny hatchlings the size of a palm. I was worried that these creatures might become extinct in Lujiawan, and I was already preparing to set up a seedling base a few years later.

I never expected that they would take action before I even had an idea.

Look at the turtles in front of us. Although they are nothing compared to the ones we dug up last year, it's still a good sign.

This is what sustainable development truly means.

Captain Yang took a few puffs of his cigarette, turned to look at Chen Fan, and asked in a low voice, "Little Chen, can I ask you a question?"

Chen Fan snapped out of his reverie. "Okay, go ahead."

Captain Yang asked in a low voice, "I know you have your reasons for doing things, but why did you only keep half of the positions for our team members and release the other half when the side business company expanded this time?"
Actually, if you keep 70% and only give them 30%, they'll be overjoyed; you don't need that much.

(End of this chapter)