Chapter 1123: Li Huai De is too conservative

If Li Xuewu were to fall ill, requiring registration at a hospital, medical treatment, and hospitalization, what expenses would be involved?

Yes, there would certainly be expenses; public-funded medical care is not equivalent to full medical coverage.

As for one-sided historical accounts and life experiences, they cannot be fully trusted.

It cannot be denied that individual units have better welfare compensation or insurance subsidies, but this situation cannot be generalized.

The current urban medical security system has gone through three stages of reform.

Namely, the "Labor Insurance Regulations of the People's Republic of China" promulgated by the Government Administration Council in February 1951, which marked the establishment of the labor insurance system for urban enterprise employees in China.

In 1958, the Government Administration Council promulgated the "Provisional Regulations on the Retirement of Workers and Staff (Draft)," which is the so-called pension insurance.

In February 1969, the Ministry of Finance issued the "Opinions on the Reform of Several Systems in the Financial Work of State-Owned Enterprises (Draft)."

The sequence of reforms in the above three periods.

What the Red Star Factory and other industrial enterprises are currently preparing for and experiencing is the third reform of labor insurance.

Is it complicated?

It is very complicated, a process of change from nothing to something, and from something to excellence.

The context of the final labor insurance system reform has continued to the later generations.

Having said that, if Li Xuewu were to seek medical treatment, what medical preparations and steps should he actually follow?

Looking from the first period, that is, after the establishment of labor insurance, one must first judge based on Li Xuewu's status and the characteristics of his treatment.

Li Xuewu has the status of a cadre and is uniformly managed by the Personnel Bureau, so he and his family members should receive a "Public-Funded Medical Certificate."

With this certificate, one can seek medical treatment at a designated hospital, where consultation fees and medicine costs are billed to the account, and the hospital reports them to the finance department for reimbursement.

However, registration fees and hospitalization fees must be paid out of pocket.

If Li Xuewu were an ordinary worker managed by the Labor Bureau, then it would be managed by the labor insurance medical pool, and most medical items would be free.

This was the medical security situation for urban enterprise employees in the early days of the "Labor Insurance" system.

The promulgation of the "Labor Insurance Regulations" also marked the establishment of the labor insurance system for urban enterprise employees in China.

Its characteristics are threefold:

(1) Labor insurance covered all types of enterprises, but later, due to the pursuit of "large and public" in the ownership structure, labor insurance gradually became a privilege of state-owned enterprises;

(2) Enterprises must pay 3% of the total wages of employees monthly as labor insurance premiums, of which 30% is turned over to the All-China Federation of Trade Unions as a labor insurance pooling fund, and 70% is deposited in the enterprise's grassroots trade union committee as a labor insurance fund;

(3) Since the labor insurance system is a supplement to the low-wage system of the planned economy, it provides relatively comprehensive protection for enterprise laborers.

In contrast, the social security system for government agencies and public institutions was established in the form of individual regulations.

The Red Star Factory does not belong to a government agency or public institution, so it will not be discussed here.

So, what changed when entering the second stage of labor insurance system reform?

First, pension insurance went from separate to unified.

Before 1958, the urban pension insurance system was divided into pension insurance for enterprise employees and pension insurance for government agencies and public institutions.

The basis for their establishment was different, and there were also differences in funding sources and benefit payments.

But this separate state did not continue; in 1958, the Government Administration Council promulgated the "Provisional Regulations on the Retirement of Workers and Staff (Draft)."

It stipulated that the coverage of pension insurance included workers and staff of all enterprises, government agencies, public institutions, and people's organizations.

This actually unified the pension insurance systems of enterprises and government agencies and public institutions.

Second, the separation of medical insurance.

The traditional urban medical insurance system mainly included public-funded medical care and labor insurance medical care.

This is what was mentioned earlier: which reimbursement channel Li Xuewu needs to follow for medical treatment is determined by his status.

Some readers say how their elders enjoyed medical care in that era, and there are differences when discussing it.

The differences here mainly stem from the difference in status and the difference in unit subsidies.

Personnel managed by the Personnel Bureau and those managed by the Labor Bureau enjoy different treatments.

Among them, public-funded medical care is mainly aimed at government agencies and public institutions, while labor insurance medical care is mainly aimed at enterprise employees.

The two are also different in terms of funding sources and management.

However, with the increase in the population covered by the system, coupled with the basic implementation of free medical care, the problem of rising costs has become increasingly serious.

The state has carried out some reforms in this regard, but the effect is not obvious.

As the main unit, the Red Star Factory is responsible for the management and operation of the labor insurance medical system and has the right and obligation to maintain and ensure the development of this system in a better direction.

Therefore, Li Huai De and other factory leaders need to set aside a meeting time to discuss and study this topic.

Third, two types of work-related injury insurance systems.

The traditional work-related injury insurance system is also aimed at enterprises and government agencies and public institutions respectively.

The work-related injury insurance system for enterprise employees was established according to the "Labor Insurance Regulations" and is a component of urban employee labor insurance.

The regulations on the work-related injury insurance system for government agencies and public institutions were first seen in the "Provisional Regulations on Awards and Compensation for Casualties of Revolutionary Staff" promulgated on December 11, 1950, and later modified three times, with standard benefits gradually increasing.

From the above analysis of the "Labor Insurance Regulations," it can be seen that as early as the first decade after the founding of the People's Republic, the insurance system for urban enterprise employees had already been established.

Pension insurance, medical insurance, work-related injury insurance.

Among them, pension insurance was the first to be pooled and unified, while medical insurance and work-related injury insurance had already been divided into enterprises and government agencies and public institutions by this point.

Which insurance is better, enterprises or government agencies and public institutions?

Ask the elderly; if they were assigned jobs after graduation, whether they wanted to go to an enterprise or a government agency/public institution, the answer is there.

Essentially, the social security system established by the "Labor Insurance Regulations" is a "State-Enterprise Insurance" system model.

That is, with the state as the implementation and management subject, the state and enterprises jointly bear the costs, thereby forming an integrated social security model of the state and enterprises.

Its characteristics are mainly:

(1) Wide coverage and comprehensive protection.

According to statistics, the number of employees enjoying labor insurance benefits in 1956 was equivalent to 94% of the total number of employees in state-owned, public-private joint, and private enterprises that year.

At the same time, because the labor insurance system is a supplement to the low-wage system, it provides urban residents with "from cradle to grave" protection items.

(2) Enterprises rely on the state, and the state assumes unlimited responsibility.

This point has changed in later generations, and I believe everyone knows it; there is no so-called iron rice bowl.

If even the grave doesn't care about you, do you think young people still need to prepare a cradle?

Not giving birth has an absolute relationship with the system.

(3) Combination of trade union management, state pooling, and enterprise insurance.

In specific implementation, 30% of the labor insurance premiums paid by enterprises are managed by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, which in fact enters the state pool.

The remaining 70% is managed by the enterprise's grassroots trade union and used within the enterprise, which is actually a type of enterprise insurance.

The development of the labor insurance context has reached a problem here.

Li Huai De wants to quickly win people's hearts and establish absolute management belief and prestige.

And what is the most effective and fastest means to unite belief and enhance prestige?

That is to improve welfare benefits.

When one day, your boss informs you that there will be no salary increase this year, there is a wail below.

But the boss says again, from today on, the company will cover all medical, pension, child-rearing, transportation, communication, living, and other expenses for all employees; would you want to kowtow to your boss?

What's the use of a salary? Isn't earning a salary just for living? Now that the company manages all your life, isn't it enough to have a little pocket money regardless of the salary?

What Li Huai De wants to do now is to quickly improve the mass base.

Not only Li Huai De, since the launch of the Great Learning activity, after other enterprises and factories carried out reforms, the management layer has changed a lot.

People have gone up, but whether they can sit steadily is another matter.

What they want to do now is to stabilize their own positions, even at the cost of overdrawing the life of the enterprise.

What are the advantages of this "State-Enterprise Insurance" model?

It is that there is someone to provide a safety net for the enterprise, and no matter how many workers there are, there is no fear; even if the factory goes bankrupt, these workers can still enjoy the benefits of the insurance system.

You say it's the same in later generations?

Wrong, completely wrong.

The insurance system in later generations is social insurance; how can it be as reliable as the current insurance system?

With social pension and medical insurance, are you worried that you won't receive insurance benefits until you die?

Now there is no need to worry, and the protection for retirement is much higher than social insurance.

Readers who don't believe it can ask the retired veteran cadres in their seventies or eighties; some of them are still enjoying the insurance system of that year.

Mentioned earlier, who manages the insurance?

A combination of trade union management, state pooling, and enterprise insurance.

However, the only thing pooled is the 30% turned over to the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, and the remaining 70% is managed by the enterprise's grassroots trade union.

Just think, this part of the money is in the hands of the enterprise, that is, in the hands of Li Huai De; how he wants to use it is just how he uses it.

The first is to extract labor insurance premiums for other purposes, either to plug financial holes or to fill loopholes in office and production.

The second is the wages of retired employees, long-term sick leave, and other labor insurance expenses of the enterprise.

Labor insurance should be managed by the factory trade union, but the head of the factory trade union takes the lead in soaking up long-term sick leave; do you think the problem here is big or not?

If the reform time of the Red Star Factory is synchronized with the outside, I am afraid that the hole in labor insurance will be huge by now.

It is impossible for Li Huai De to have only started to take action on labor insurance now.

The Red Star Factory is considered a strange flower in the overall enterprise insurance fund management system.

Jing Yunong and Gu Weijie have great foresight and have been suppressing this part of the funds, not allowing them to be used indiscriminately.

Even when the Red Star Factory wanted to build residential buildings at the beginning, it did not use a single cent from here.

This is the money bag for the medical treatment and retirement of Red Star Factory employees; whoever moves it will bear the infamy for a lifetime.

There are those who are not afraid of being scolded; anyway, this part of the money is idle, and there is income every year, so the pressure for employee retirement and old-age care is not great.

Therefore, these people started to spend money recklessly.

There are those who do serious things, develop factories, promote production, etc.

After making money, the hole was filled back.

But just think, in the era of planned economy, how many can be like the Red Star Factory, changing lanes and overtaking, making a lot of money.

Especially after entering the 1970s, encountering market reforms, everything was finished at once.

After the tide receded, the beach was full of people with their pants down.

This kind of behavior caused a serious blow to the current enterprise insurance system, and the result was to promote the change of labor insurance to the third period.

In February 1969, the Ministry of Finance issued the "Opinions on the Reform of Several Systems in the Financial Work of State-Owned Enterprises (Draft)."

It clearly stipulated that "state-owned enterprises shall stop extracting labor insurance premiums," and "the wages of retired employees, long-term sick leave, and other labor insurance expenses of enterprises shall be listed as non-operating expenses."

This regulation caused the "State-Enterprise Insurance" model to degenerate into a single "Enterprise Insurance" model.

The labor insurance system became an internal affair of each enterprise and continued until after the opening up in the 1970s.

What does it mean?

It means that the cubs sell the grandfather's fields without feeling pain, right? Well, let's split up!

The insurance compensation and verification of enterprise cadres and employees are handled by themselves; if you have it, you waste it, and if employees have no money to see a doctor and scold their mothers, you just bear it.

Does Li Huai De know that this change is coming?

He doesn't know, including all the factory leaders of the Red Star Factory, so there is today's meeting.

But not knowing doesn't mean not feeling it; as long as you work in organization and finance, you absolutely know this kind of risk.

Would you spend your family's bottom-line savings indiscriminately?

"There are mainly three points of opinion, everyone discuss it."

Li Huai De has communicated with several leaders in private, and the opinions are not very unified.

Of course, when in doubt, ask Li Xuewu; he certainly asked Li Xuewu too.

But Li Xuewu's ideas were more radical than his, and he was so excited that he almost couldn't hold back.

In the end, he called Zhou Miaomiao to the room to discuss dance movements, which kept his mind clear.

"First point, in order to accelerate industrial layout, temporarily use enterprise insurance funds as support."

"Second point, in order to guarantee and promote employee welfare benefits, add labor security items."

"Third point, increase the budget for retired employees, sick leave, and other labor protection."

After Li Huai De finished speaking the three points, he looked at the crowd at the conference table and emphasized: "I will focus on the third point, about retired employees."

"Currently, our factory is undergoing personnel system reform, and a large number of employees have withdrawn from labor positions, giving way to young people."

He pointed to the conference table and said: "At the beginning of the personnel reform, a plan to retire a batch of people had already been set."

"The topic raised now can be considered a supplement and adjustment to this plan."

After Li Huai De finished speaking, he looked at the crowd, waiting for everyone to offer opinions.

Cheng Kaiyuan glanced at the opposite side; Old Li doing work would not ask Li Xuewu's opinion.

In private, Li Huai De had already sought his opinion on these topics, and he was still relatively conservative.

Seeing that Li Xuewu did not show a positive attitude, he also stuck to his own opinion.

"Let me say something; Director Li has told me about this plan."

He crossed his hands and looked at the others, saying: "This year's financial budget is under pressure. I think Comrade Yunong is not at home; if she were at home, she would definitely be complaining to everyone."

"Hahaha—"

The meeting was relatively relaxed; this was just normal work and did not involve personal interests, so everyone spoke freely.

"Let me start with production; after all, the funding gap is quite large," Cheng Kaiyuan said, gesturing toward Li Xuewu opposite him. "Xuewu has already coordinated several times on that front."

"Regarding the matter of temporarily using insurance funds to cover production shortfalls, I still hold a cautious attitude."

He turned serious and said, "The implications are too great. Once this precedent is set, I fear we won't be able to contain it."

"Once a deficit is formed, I'm afraid the workers will react, and the higher-ups will also take notice."

"Hmm, I have indeed thought about this, and I have also spoken with Comrade Kaiyuan about it."

Li Huai De nodded and said, "Our management committee faces a dilemma in our work: one is the difficulty of looking toward the higher-ups, and the other is the difficulty of looking toward those below."

Everyone grinned; some nodded, while others shook their heads.

"I think it's still a matter of scale; the key lies in grasping it."

He did not mind Cheng Kaiyuan's opposition, explaining, "How much to divert, where to use it, when to return it, and what to return it with—these require a standardized plan."

"This point can be discussed after we adjourn; today, let's just discuss the basic proposal."

Li Huai De replied to Cheng Kaiyuan, looked at the others, and waited for their opinions.

"Ahem—"

Xue Zhifu sat up straight, coughed, and said, "Let me speak about engineering, services, and logistics."

"Everyone knows about the engineering side; this year, we have taken very large strides and want to advance at a run, so the pressure on construction funds is also great."

He looked down slightly at his documents and said, "Except for the maintenance budget, which hasn't changed, the engineering budget has long since exceeded its limit; let's not talk about that."

The reason for not talking about it is that most engineering investment projects belong to tertiary industries and joint industrial ventures, which are self-funded by the enterprise.

In other words, the Red Star Factory has money and is willing to build the factory however it sees fit.

As long as the competent department approves the audit and the local land resource audit passes, there are no other restrictions.

When the proposal was submitted, since no one thought about merging it into planned production, there was no point in thinking about getting construction budgets from above.

Therefore, the small amount of conventional construction budget provided from above is not worth mentioning in the face of the Red Star Factory's sweeping infrastructure investment.

Calling it "over budget" is an understatement; it has more than doubled.

"I will talk about the engineering construction sector; it still relates to the engineering team and the labor team."

Xue Zhifu has smoked and drunk tea for many years, so his voice is very hoarse; laryngitis is inevitable.

So you can hear that when he speaks, he has to cough to clear his throat every few sentences, and take a sip of tea after every paragraph.

It's not just Xue Zhifu who is like this; you'll find that most cadres who have worked in leadership positions for a long time are the same.

Especially those who have come up from government units; with voices marinated in smoke and tea, none of them speak with a booming tone.

It seems that Li Xuewu's past habit of speaking like thunder was rare among enterprise cadres.

No wonder everyone says Li Xuewu is becoming more and more progressive; look at how scholarly he speaks now, with few times he speaks loudly.

"In the first half of this year, the Red Star Factory expanded its construction team and labor team, and over eight thousand people suddenly poured into the engineering sector."

He glanced at Cheng Kaiyuan and said, "If it were in the past, the number of people under my command would have been more than Deputy Director Cheng's."

"Hehehe—now you are not as good as me," Cheng Kaiyuan said, smoking and laughing. "I have nearly eighty thousand people under my command."

"Hahaha—"

Everyone laughed; this kind of comparison was like two company commanders sitting together bragging when they were building their teams back in the day.

"Don't talk about eighty thousand people; even with these eight thousand, I feel the pressure is very great."

Xue Zhifu glanced in Li Huai De's direction and said, "The construction team and the labor team are both positions engaged in heavy manual labor; the comrades are working very hard."

"It is midsummer now, but we cannot stop thinking about the winter."

He said earnestly, "Furthermore, the team has expanded rapidly; labor protection can barely keep up, but labor benefits are still lacking."

"I hope the factory can consider establishing a sound and perfect labor protection system for the two teams."

"Hmm, this opinion is very sound."

Li Huai De nodded and said, "Regarding the safety protection system and labor protection system for the labor team and the construction team, Comrade Xuewu mentioned it to me once, and it is also to be discussed this time."

He gestured toward Li Xuewu and said, "Especially for safe production labor, have the relevant systems been formed into a plan and issued?"

"Yes, Leader. It was designed and customized together by the management personnel and technical backbone of both teams."

Li Xuewu responded to and supplemented Li Huai De's words, stating only the facts, and stopped speaking after finishing.

"The labor protection system must keep up; after all, the labor team and the engineering team are long-term key tasks."

Li Huai De tapped his fingers on the table, looked at everyone, and said, "The engineering team must gradually become professional and industrialized; in the future, a professional construction engineering team will be established. This point cannot be shaken."

"As for the labor team, at least during the period of personnel reform, the number of people will not be less than the current scale, so a perfect protection system must also be established."

He said, "I have heard it, and I have seen it with my own eyes: in the Steel City, under the scorching sun, the workers are working on construction."

"It is very hard work. Personnel reform is not about splashing mud; treating people like mud to be discarded is not the way—they must be utilized reasonably."

"Director Li, should we execute according to the current welfare standards of the engineering team, or..."

Gu Weijie held a fountain pen, looking as if she were ready to record at any time, and looked at Li Huai De with a frown, saying, "My suggestion is to execute according to the engineering team's standards for the time being, then come up with a plan, and then revise it."

"Then we will follow your meaning and supplement this treatment first."

Li Huai De is very eager to accomplish things; he does not have a consciousness of origin distinction, nor does he ideologize the factory workers.

This is thanks to the Red Star Factory's rapid completion of reform and personnel adjustments, without suffering overly serious trauma.

The few who had grudges against Li Huai De have already been dealt with; now, he is the one who calls the shots in the factory.

The labor team is not used like this in other factories outside; it carries a bit of a labor education flavor.

But it is not like that at the Red Star Factory. The engineering team is a formal establishment; in the group system proposal, there is an engineering construction company.

The labor team is not; the labor team is just a transitional unit that appeared during the Red Star Factory's personnel reform, system reform, and industrial structure adjustment process.

The sources of people in the labor team are quite varied: those transferred from workshops due to technical and personnel reforms, workers who joined after mergers, those with problems during the "Great Learning" activities, or some active and progressive workers who transferred positions voluntarily to earn higher wages.

Yes, formal employees of the engineering team do not earn as much as those in the labor team.

For manual labor, not only is the food standard high, but the wage standard is also high. This time, Li Huai De is seeking brave men under heavy rewards.

The speed of infrastructure construction equals the speed at which the Red Star Factory is going full throttle to make money. Completing infrastructure as soon as possible means the Red Star Factory's plants can start production as soon as possible.

The workers in the labor team are not all people specialized in manual labor; after the reform ends, they can also operate machinery when they return to the workshops.

Therefore, the meeting unanimously passed the motion to supplement and perfect the labor protection system for the engineering team and the labor team.

Things like labor protection equipment, labor protection services, and medical and health services must all keep up quickly.

Thanks to Li Xuewu's suggestion some time ago, the Red Star Factory vigorously recruited and conscripted medical personnel, so the factory hospital is now very well-staffed.

This is the perfect time to put these medical personnel down to the front lines for training, especially in orthopedics and emergency medicine.

"What about Comrade Xuewu? Do you have any opinions?"

Everyone had spoken a round; some things were implemented, some were shelved. Of the three main topics, the matter of diverting funds had yet to be finalized.

Welfare protection had determined several items: welfare supplements for the labor team and engineering team, adjustment of the protection system for shipbuilding workers at the Yingcheng Shipyard, etc.

Regarding retirement, sick leave, and other labor protections, only labor protection was implemented because the Red Star Factory has its own tertiary industries.

Although the clothing factory and the labor protection factory use old equipment, the scale is still very large after merging several factories of the joint industrial venture.

Not only can they guarantee the supply of labor protection products for several factories, but they can also supply other enterprises; it is the most profitable tertiary industry.

The current difficulty lies in the use of funds, retired workers, and long-term sick patients.

Everyone had spoken, only Li Xuewu remained, and Gu Weijie called his name.

Before Li Xuewu could speak, Li Huai De smiled, put down his teacup, glanced at Li Xuewu, and said to everyone, "On the way back last week, we communicated a bit; Xuewu has more ideas than I do."

"Is that so—hurry up and say it for us to hear."

Gu Weijie, who loves a good show, saw that most of Li Huai De's topics had hit a wall, so naturally, she wanted to pull Li Xuewu in to mediate.

Li Xuewu finally understood: he is the mason, specifically there to mix the mortar.

Mixing mortar isn't even the half of it; he also has to use bricks and tiles to patch the holes.

However, he was long used to it. Li Huai De put him in this position, sitting in the first chair on the lower hand, isn't that exactly the work he does?

"Director Li said I have many ideas; it is indeed quite a lot," Li Xuewu said with a smile, gesturing toward Li Huai De. "Director Li only wants to divert part of the funds; my idea is to divert all the funds."

"Hahaha—"

Li Huai De looked at the surprised expressions and gazes of the crowd and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

I told you all before, Li Xuewu doesn't stop until he shocks people; he scared you, didn't he!

"Divert all of it? From the account?"

Gu Weijie glanced at Li Huai De, knowing that Old Li must know something, and also knowing that Li Xuewu is definitely not a reckless person.

Li Huai De laughing so happily, and Li Xuewu looking so calm and steady, naturally meant this wasn't a joke, nor was it reckless.

"Yes, divert all of it, but it's not a diversion."

Li Xuewu said under the concerned gazes of the crowd, "Leaving so much money in the account is undoubtedly a waste."

"Diverting has risks; if the assets don't match the accounts, or if assets don't cover liabilities, it's a trouble for everyone at the Red Star Factory."

"Xuewu's opinion is to put this portion of funds into the Joint Savings Bank."

Li Huai De took the lead in explaining, "We must use this portion of funds as principal to implement investment for profit."

"The profit portion will be used as a supplement to welfare benefits or as a supplement to insurance construction."

"This... isn't the stride a bit too large?"

Cheng Kaiyuan pinched his ear, looked at Li Xuewu, and asked, "Is there any insurance mechanism following it?"

"All investments have risks; no matter how large the insurance is, it cannot guarantee that our investment will definitely make money."

Li Xuewu first emphasized this, then looked at the crowd and explained, "Only when the absolute value of the investment amount is greater than the risk value can we control the project's profit."

"That is what I want to say: put these ten-plus million in insurance funds into the Joint Savings Bank for operation."

"The risk is still too high; even if our economic system is very stable, there are few projects to invest in, and the profit is too meager."

Cheng Kaiyuan reminded, "If there is no sufficient guarantee and absolute confidence, I am not optimistic about this project."

"If you are going to say that we should wait until the Joint Savings Bank's settlement business is opened and go to Hong Kong to participate in investment, then I disagree even more."

"Domestic capital flow investment is naturally not the first choice; I also have concerns about this point."

Li Xuewu nodded, agreed with Cheng Kaiyuan's opinion, looked at the crowd again, and said, "However, there is one point where Deputy Director Cheng and I have the same opinion, and that is the opening of settlement business."

"As long as the settlement business between the Oriental Era Bank and the Joint Savings Bank is opened, there will be the convenience of foreign exchange settlement."

He looked at the crowd and said, "At least within ten years, doing foreign exchange custody and settlement, as well as purchasing advanced equipment, will not be a loss."

"You mean..."

Everyone at the conference table thought of it: Li Xuewu wants to use this money as a guarantee, cooperate with the Oriental Era Bank, and act as a capital clearing platform.

For example, the Beijing No. 2 Machinery Factory received a foreign trade order through the Red Star Factory, exported equipment, and earned foreign exchange.

How did they do it in the past?

Of course, the Beijing No. 2 Machinery Factory had never received such an order; if they really earned foreign exchange, it would naturally be repatriated through formal channels.

But what if the export order becomes a procurement order?

When the Beijing No. 2 Machinery Factory exports, it opens an overseas account at the Oriental Era Bank as a platform for goods and capital transactions.

As long as this money doesn't come back, there's no need to convert the currency.

They can purchase advanced equipment and technology through the Oriental Era Bank or the Red Star Factory's resources, and when they return to the country, there's no need to convert the currency.

Because this is no longer money, but duty-free products; invisibly, they have made a profit.

If the Beijing No. 2 Machinery Factory doesn't need these technologies and equipment, and sells them to others, does it belong to an internal transaction, and the money falls back into the pocket of the Beijing No. 2 Machinery Factory?

If operated well, the Beijing No. 2 Machinery Factory will not only not lose money, but also make a small profit.

With the Joint Savings Bank acting as custodian for the Oriental Era Bank's project funds and using the Joint Savings Bank's insurance principal as collateral, what project can't be operated?

Ten-plus million is enough to satisfy the operation of this project.

Inside the conference room, except for Li Huai De drinking tea calmly, everyone else was frowning and thinking.

Is there risk?

Yes, Li Xuewu already said that investment has risks.

The operation method he mentioned is itself an investment project, just that they are operating it themselves.

And what they are playing with is a field the Red Star Factory is familiar with, which is the import of technology and equipment.

In this era, advanced technology and equipment from outside have no tariffs when entering the country; it is a welfare for supporting construction.

Although they avoided foreign exchange conversion, they also effectively enriched industrial production and technical improvement.

This is not drilling loopholes, but finding a way out. The Red Star Factory can achieve leapfrog development through foreign advanced technology and equipment, and other factories and units can also do it.

The obstacles currently limiting the import of advanced technology and equipment are nothing more than a few, but Hong Kong is definitely an excellent springboard.

The establishment of the Oriental Era Bank must definitely not be a performance of being a loner, a fierce dragon crossing the river, or a flash in the pan.

Li Xuewu wants to add weight to the Oriental Era Bank and constantly put a halo on this bank.

A bridgehead for industrial reform technology and equipment import and export, the first project for enterprise self-held insurance fund reasonable operation...

Old Li thought for many days and didn't dare to make a decision; he had to bring it to the meeting to discuss.

Either follow his plan, divert part of the funds, and strictly control borrowing and repayment according to a feasible plan.

Or see if Li Xuewu's plan is feasible, let everyone be a little bolder, and create brilliance.

Actually, after Li Xuewu finished speaking, everyone had ideas in their hearts. When the Joint Savings Bank was created, there was a financial operation item.

Li Xuewu even went out of his way to ask for a foreign settlement and clearing license during the negotiations, which was specially applied for by the credit union to the bank.

Thanks to this era; you wouldn't even think about it three years before or three years after; this thing would definitely not be approved for you.

Actually, this era is very confused about development, and also very relaxed, because there is basically no management standard to learn from.

Look at Li Xuewu asking for import and export rights from the Ministry of Foreign Trade; they didn't give it because the mainland already had a relatively mature import and export commodity management system, so if you ask, of course they won't give it.

However, foreign settlement business, especially industrial payment settlement between mainland banks and Hong Kong banks, still belongs to a niche field.

How should I put it? It can be given or not given; if you push it, it gets given.

Li Xuewu forced the credit union to put in the effort and finally passed the audit for this license.

It will take some time to come down; the higher-ups still have to audit the qualifications of the Oriental Era Bank.

But there is no problem here, and there is even less of a problem on the Oriental Era Bank side.

With 20 tons of gold as a bottom line, I dare not say it's fighting head-on with HSBC, but ordinary banks really can't compare to the Oriental Era Bank's wealth.

This is the capital brought out by more than a dozen old-fashioned capitalists who went bankrupt; if it were in the thirties, it could also establish a bank.

Everyone is being vague, not daring to make a decision immediately. Fortunately, Li Huai De is not in a hurry, so he shelved this issue to be studied later.

Li Xuewu is someone who dares to speak; he is not currently a member of the management committee, so whatever he says, even if he says it wrong, everyone just treats it as him talking nonsense.

"Welfare benefits and welfare projects must be done, and they must be done big and done well."

Goodness, no wonder Li Huai De said Li Xuewu has more ideas than he does; this isn't just "more," this is radical.

"Of course, you can't just distribute the money; that's useless," Li Xuewu said, looking at the crowd. "My opinion is to start from these four points: clothing, food, housing, and transportation."

"The residential area needs to have a shopping mall and a service department. I think welfare projects should be done well; at least in terms of commodity categories, they must be rich."

Li Xuewu certainly wouldn't talk about price reductions or discounts; in the planned economy era, that's something only a fool would do.

He even wanted to increase commodity prices and implement a negotiated price commodity system.

"Secondly, the residential environment must be beautiful, maintained, and enrich the entertainment life of workers and their families."

He suggested, "Playgrounds, swimming pools, and gymnasiums—it's time to put them on the planning agenda."

"Furthermore, nursing homes and sanatoriums can also have budgets allocated from the capital project; this is what factory workers are most concerned about."

"Finally, transportation. For worker commuting, we can centrally purchase large buses to ensure the safety of workers commuting inside and outside the city."

Li Xuewu tapped his pencil and said, "If the insurance funds are operated properly, even the construction and operation funds for these projects can be obtained from the profits."

"Xuewu is still obsessed with capital operation," Xue Zhifu said with a smile, pointing at him. "You've already arranged how to spend the money we've earned."

"This is what you call being resourceful."

Gu Weijie smiled and glanced at Li Xuewu, signaling him to continue; he hadn't even reached the key issue yet.

"Regarding retirement and sick patients, I don't have any experience in handling them," Li Xuewu said with a smile, looking at the crowd. "If you want me to say it, the elderly being cared for and having something to rely on is the ideal for all of us."

"Speak to the point; you should be very clear," Gu Weijie said, not letting him go, and reminded him, "Retired workers will show an upward trend; there will be more and more people, and the funding pressure will be greater and greater."

"Especially with the rapid expansion of factory workers now, how should so many retired workers be settled?"

"Open sources and throttle expenses—two directions."

Li Xuewu didn't mind Gu Weijie's attitude; this wasn't aimed at him, nor was it intentionally making things difficult for Li Huai De.

This is work, and it is also a fact. Gu Weijie is in charge of organizational work, so she must talk about this at the meeting.

Jing Yunong is not at home; if she were, she would definitely talk about funding pressure and difficulties together with Gu Weijie.

The Red Star Factory earns a lot this year, but it also spends a lot, and will spend even more in the future. If it can't manage its purse strings, the Red Star Factory will go bankrupt.

Jing Yunong manages the money earned, and Gu Weijie manages the workers who spend the money, so both are very worried about the Red Star Factory's current funding pressure.

"The current payment coefficients for pension insurance, medical insurance, and work-related injury insurance are still not high."

Li Xuewu deliberated for a moment and said earnestly, "Except for the capital operation I just mentioned, the only way is to open sources."

As everyone looked over, he tapped his fingers and said, "The Red Star Factory wants to establish its own medical system, so there is no need to worry about medical insurance for the time being."

"Work-related injury insurance needs to be adjusted; establishing commercial insurance is imperative," Li Xuewu said, ignoring the crowd's reaction. "Pension insurance is the same; it must follow the route of supplementary insurance."

"We can set up enterprise annuities and housing provident funds."