The good and the bad things in China's factories

"In Bac Giang and Bac Ninh Provinces in northeastern Vietnam, Foxconn and other contract manufacturers operate massive factories in scenic countryside that was once rice fields and farmland, surrounded by temples, banyan trees and ponds. Now, workers from around the country descend to these facilities in search of jobs.

A billboard outside a Foxconn factory in Bac Ninh advertised that the company is looking to hire 5,000 workers “urgently” with an offer of roughly $300 in monthly pay for an entry-level position. It is less than half the monthly pay — 4,500 yuan, or about $650 — that Foxconn is offering new hires at its assembly lines in Shenzhen in southeastern China.

The pay disparity underscores another reason that companies are looking for new manufacturing options. Over the past decade, manufacturing workers in China have tripled their annual income to more than $9,300, according to the country’s Bureau of Statistics.

Over two decades, the tech industry has established in China an expansive collection of suppliers that make the cords, buttons and machines critical to assembling smartphones and computers. The concentration of suppliers reduces shipment costs and makes it easier to fix faulty parts.

“We have a long way to go to have the whole supply chain diversified outside of China,” said Mehdi Hosseini, a financial analyst at Susquehanna International Group who focuses on the tech supply chain."