How Wen became driver of change in a migrant worker's life
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-03-06 07:24

Fan Shusheng is a transformed man, more eloquent and articulate today, says wife Zhang Xianfen.

It's not only his wife who thinks so. Says the 36-year-old migrant worker: "I used to think only about how to make a few more bucks. But now I've realized it's more useful to learn about what the laws have to say through TV and newspapers."

The skilled construction worker's articulation and sense of purpose and justice have helped many, and co-worker Yang Ruifeng is one of them. Yang says he got his arrear wages because of Fan's advise.

Fan was one of the millions of migrant workers till a year ago. But today, he is considered something more than that by fellow workers from Henan province.

His fate changed after he and 11 other grassroots representatives were invited to share their views with Premier Wen Jiabao last February. The premier was preparing the Government Work Report, which he presented to the National People's Congress in March last year.

He was pleasantly surprised and nervous, too, at the invitation. To avoid being rendered speechless in front of the premier, the Beijing Zhuzong Group employee prepared a written speech.

But that didn't help him because Wen stopped him before he could start reading from it. "The premier asked me to speak my mind," Fan says. "But I was really nervous."

It was Wen's infectious smile that calmed his nerves. "So I took the liberty and voiced all the bitterness we had for our condition - from our low wages, the difficulties we face in getting our children admitted to schools to the absence of retirement plan and medical insurance," he recalls.

"The premier listened to us attentively and promised that the government would come up with policies to help solve our problems."

In a year's time, Fan says, he and his fellow workers have seen their life improve gradually. He now makes 100 yuan a day, 20 yuan more than last year. He and his co-workers stay in better dormitories and can afford better food now.

"People have become more courteous to migrant workers now," he says.

He has been exempted from paying the tuition fees for his two children attending school back home in Henan. "That alone saves us about 1,500 yuan a year," he says.

One worry remains: what happens to migrant workers like him when they get old. Some construction companies do not pay old-age pension to migrant workers.

He says he has heard that some cities have started pilot projects to help people like him join the pension plan. "I hope it will be extended to every one," he says.

China Daily

(China Daily 03/06/2008 page8)