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January 3rd, 2008 by China Business Success Stories
By Ernie Tadla
Church in the Park
We lived in a lovely, spacious apartment in a complex of four buildings a block from the PPI studios. We were the only foreigners in the area, so we stood out. The local people were friendly and the guards at the gate were always helpful. We had two bedrooms, one of which became Lovy’s office, two baths, a Chinese kitchen, dining room and living room. We lived on the fourth floor and our balcony overlooked a busy intersection that provided much entertainment. We enjoyed late night dinners on the balcony watching the evening parade of humanity below. It was always busy, always changing depending on the time of day or the season.
Just across the street from the office was Zhongshan Park, an oasis in the middle of the busy, throbbing, and noisy section of the city. It was over six square city blocks with heavy tropical foliage, pools, canals, Chinese rock gardens, bridges, fields for kite-flying, benches and lots of open areas of grass. During weekends, it was crowded with families with children and grandparents. Read the rest of “China Chapter Five: Church in the Park, Beggar on the Street” or post a comment
December 24th, 2007 by China Business Success Stories
OK, I’ll admit it. I like some Christmas songs. Not so much “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” as some of the more traditional ones. So I get a kick out of hearing these songs sung in Chinese. Thinking that some of you may feel the same way (you all seemed to really enjoy the Hakka Jingle Bells song), I decided to put together an album of Chinese Christmas music.
This album contains secular kids’ classics like “Jingle Bells” as well as religious classics like “What Child is This.” Some songs sound like they are sung by a church choir, while others are more playful. Some of the songs’ sound quality is good, while others’ are abysmally low. The melodies are familiar, but the lyrics are all in Chinese. Oh, yes. You need this to make your Christmas complete.The Sinosplice Chinese Christmas Song Album (~40 MB)
Read the rest of “Christmas Songs in Chinese” or post a comment
December 20th, 2007 by China Business Success Stories
By Omer Abdullah
In the aftermath of the recent recalls of tainted and toxic China-made products, more than a few have speculated that manufacturers who have outsourced production operations there are no doubt rethinking their sourcing strategies and quality control processes, and, if some of the, shall we say, ‘more aggressive’ pundits are to be believed, even rethinking their continued presence there altogether. However, according to the results of a proprietary survey just completed by the smart cube, the pundits appear to be very much mistaken.
In fact, the majority of manufacturers surveyed are confident their supply chains are more than adequately secure to ensure the safety of their products. Indeed, nearly 80% of respondents (all of whom were manufacturers who currently manufactured their products in China) reported that they felt no need to review their supply chain activities in the wake of the well-publicized toy and toothpaste recalls. Further, these global manufacturers believe that the recent recall issues, while serious, are aberrations and not symptomatic of some more fundamental issue inherent within Chinese manufacturing. They appear to be on solid ground, as Mattel itself has apologized for initially putting the blame on its Chinese suppliers.
Read the rest of “Survey: Global Manufacturers Staying Put in China” or post a comment
December 18th, 2007 by China Business Success Stories
By AJ Hu
The recent series of high-profile labor events has thrown a spotlight on the protection of workers’ rights in China.
Several foreign multinationals, including FoxConn, McDonald’s and Yum! Brands Inc - which owns the KFC brand, had been investigated for providing poor working conditions, underpaying their part-time workers and engaging in other unfair labor practices. The rescue of slave workers from the brick kilns and mines in Henan and Shanxi provinces had also made headlines in many local and international news media. These events and the recent enactment of the revised China labor law on June 29th, 2007 - after 18 months of heated debates, are reminding foreign investors to be mindful of their legal obligations as an employer in China.Obligations of Foreign Employers
China has its own unique labor system and regulations. Apart from the usual employment requirements, such as signing contracts with workers, meeting wage standards and issuing salary timely, employers in China are also obliged to: Read the rest of “A Practical Guide to Labor Law Compliance in China” or post a comment
December 17th, 2007 by China Business Success Stories
By Ernie Tadla
About Lovy
Lovy and I were high-school sweethearts and were married for forty-three years before her untimely death. She had worked and put me through university and contributed mightily to the financial stores of our maturing family. This adventure allowed her the opportunity to retire from being a certified dental assistant and enjoy a totally new life, and China, which she did.
Lovy Catherine Edinger was her official birth name. Her father, Phil always wanted a daughter with that name. Of course, her name always got attention. Imagine sitting in your dentist’s chair receiving your regular check-up and the dentist says to his assistant, “Lovy, please pass the suction tube.” What thoughts would go through your mind? At work, Lovy was called Lee.
When at a party or shopping in a crowd, instead of me calling her name out loud, we had a signature call, “Yoo hoo” that she responded to, knowing I was looking for her.
When we met new people who reacted to her name, I would suggest that it was her name that was an important factor in our long-term, stable and happy marriage. In any normal relationships, there are times of anger and frustration as was in ours. I found it difficult to Read the rest of “China Chapter Four: A Wife in Shanghai” or post a comment
