Workplace reviews and discussion: 新光合成纖維股份有限公司

Work ends on time after eight hours, and it takes about eight minutes to walk to the main gate; salaries are never delayed, and the year-end bonus is around two months’ pay.

If there are safety concerns, tasks are scheduled to be carried out in the morning. Everything has to be assigned; if something isn’t assigned, it’s fine not to do it. Overall, it’s very relaxed and suitable for coasting toward retirement, but not suitable for people who have higher standards for their work, because no one will do even one extra thing for you.

Many things that could be improved or updated continue to be used as long as they remain functional. On-site chairs are used until they break, and new ones still aren’t purchased; “smart” systems are just for show—in practice, forms are filled out manually, and paper records still have to be written, meaning everything is recorded twice. Neither the drum-unloading log nor the so-called OEE is being used to its full potential; there is room for improvement.

When there is a problem with raw materials, you are expected to quietly keep working. One particular supervisor only recognizes “AT”; when things are going well, he treats you like a good friend, but when they are not, he makes all kinds of unreasonable demands. Costs are calculated only using product quotations; raw-material quotations are generally not used. Sometimes you are inexplicably chewed out and made a scapegoat for someone else’s frustration.

The SOPs are left for the people on the floor to write, and shifting the blame is an essential skill. However, problems from the shop floor cannot be passed further down the chain, and migrant workers may even earn more than you. They listen to your opinions, but that does not mean they will take them seriously. The company will keep operating without you, so there is no need to be overly enthusiastic. Employee training is lacking; in practice, many things have to be figured out through self-study. The learning period is dragged out indefinitely—as long as production can continue, no one cares about anything else. Meetings after the night shift end amount to free overtime, though they generally do not exceed half an hour.