Vice Minister Zhang frowned and said, "This isn't a question of whether you need it or not. It's that the factory isn't doing well right now, and there are too many surplus employees. We need to implement preferential reforms to allow most of the older workers who are over 55 to retire early."
“Master Lin, you are a senior worker in the factory with high ideological awareness. We came to you first because we want you to set an example.”
Now that state-owned factories are undergoing reforms and adopting a contract system, early retirement means that the job cannot be taken over by others, and retirement means a reduction in monthly salary.
Having worked for so many years, those with high seniority levels don't want to retire early so they can earn more money each month.
But veteran workers like Lin Yongnian, who have worked in the factory for several years, have lost their enthusiasm for work because they rely on being one of the factory's elders and are getting old.
They let the young men do all the work while they sat around leisurely drinking tea.
Moreover, if they make any mistakes at work, and the managers criticize them, they will talk back, even more so than the managers in the workshop.
This fostered a particularly lazy atmosphere in the factory, which led to new employees following suit, exhibiting a lazy work attitude, disobeying management, and contradicting the factory leaders.
After discussion and deliberation by the factory leaders and union leaders, it was decided that in order to solve the problem of surplus employees and change the factory's atmosphere, those older employees who were of retirement age and eligible for early retirement would be allowed to retire early.
Lin Yongnian: "..."
He didn't want to set an example.
He's only 55 years old and he's already retired. What can he do all day long at home?
Lin Yongnian stayed at the Labor and Wages Department for quite a while before leaving. In any case, there was no room for negotiation regarding his early retirement.
The factory is definitely going to let him retire now that he's on leave.
Vice Minister Zhang told him to complete his retirement procedures this week, so he wouldn't have to go to the factory for work anymore.
Back in the workshop, Lin Yongnian, looking particularly grim, began searching for his teacup and newspaper.
But he searched for a long time and still couldn't find it.
"Where did it go? Where did it go?" Lin Yongnian asked anxiously.
"Old Lin, what are you looking for?" a worker asked him.
Lin Yongnian frowned and said unhappily, "Where's the tea mug? I clearly put it here when I went to the labor and personnel department, how come I can't find it? Who the hell stole it?"
Everyone in the workshop looked at him strangely.
One of the workers pointed to the iron rack at the workshop entrance and said, "Aren't you going to put the rack at the entrance anymore? Besides, who would steal your broken teacup?"
"Isn't it still on the shelf? Old Lin, your memory is really bad these days."
"That's right, Kimichi was holding a mask in his hand and looking for it everywhere."
Lin Yongnian paused for a moment, then looked at the iron frame at the workshop entrance. Sure enough, he saw many teacups that he had used for many years, which had fallen off the porcelain.
He wiped his face, realizing that his utter confusion stemmed from the incident at the dam, which had distracted him and caused him to forget where he had put the teacup.
At 5 p.m., Lin Yongnian walked home with Lin Guodong, his hands behind his back and his back hunched.
"Dad, I heard you were taken to the labor relations department today?"
Lin Guodong was no longer in the same workshop as Lin Yongnian; he was transferred to the 괗 workshop three years ago.
"Mm." Lin Yongnian nodded.
Lin Guodong asked, "What did the Ministry of Labor and Personnel ask you to do?"
Lin Yongnian sighed, "Ah, Guodong, Dad might have to retire."
Lin Guodong paused, "The factory is going to let you retire early?"
In the past two years, many factories have forced their older workers to retire early due to poor performance.
Their steel mill was more profitable than other mills, but unexpectedly, the trend of early retirement still reached the steel mill.
Lin Yongnian nodded silently.
Lin Guodong frowned and said, "Why are you retiring early? You're a veteran technical backbone in our steel plant's welding workshop."
“Even if the factory wants the older workers to retire, shouldn’t it be you first?”
There are still so many old workers in the factory who have been working there for years, lacking skills and always slacking off.
If anyone should retire, it should be them who retire first.
His pension will decrease after retirement. His father is only 55 years old. He'll have nothing to do after retirement.
Lin Guodong didn't want his father to retire so early.
Lin Yongnian said, "The factory wants you to take the lead. Just watch, it's the same for everyone else. Anyone who reaches the age limit will have to retire early."
Lin Guodong: "But Dad, if you retire, you'll be so bored staying at home!"
"Sigh, what can we do? The factory is going to reform, and they want us old guys who have worked for the factory for over three years to retire early. How can we not retire?"
The resentment in Lin Yongnian's words was almost overwhelming.
Father and son, Gege, were talking about retirement when they returned home. Just as they reached the gate of the yard, they saw Junjun, who was carrying a schoolbag, fighting with Gege.
"Jun Jun, what are you doing?" Lin Guodong shouted.
Seven-year-old Lin Junjun released the child he had been pinning down and hitting, rubbed his nose with his thumb, pointed at the child on the ground and said, "I'll let you go for now, but if you dare to laugh at me again, I'll beat you up again."
The little boy got up and ran away.
"Slap." Lin Guodong slapped his son on the back of the head.
"Lin Junjun, who taught you to fight?"
Lin Yongnian quickly pulled his grandson behind him to protect him, glaring at Lin Guodong and saying, "Why did you hit Junjun? Didn't you hear Junjun say that the child was making fun of him?"
Lin Guodong: "Everyone laughs at him, he can't just hit anyone."
Lin Junjun pouted unconvinced and said, "He said it's because Dad and you were unfilial and treated Grandma badly before, so Grandma doesn't want you anymore, and doesn't want this grandson of hers. What a joke! You're a grandson that no grandma wants!"
"I'm going to beat him up. If he dares to laugh at me again, I'll beat him to death!" Lin Junjun said angrily.
Lin Guodong: "..."
Lin Yongnian's expression was somewhat unpleasant. He patted his grandson's shoulder and said, "Alright, hurry home and do your homework."
Lin Junjun made a face at Lin Guodong and then ran into the yard.
Lin Guodong: "This child..."
Lin Junjun ran to the front door and saw that it was open, so he knew that his mother had come home and quickly called out, "Mom."
Zhang Jiao, who had spent three days in the hospital, sat exhausted on a cool chair. Hearing her son's voice, she perked up and looked up.
"Junjun."
Lin Junjun threw down his schoolbag and rushed to his mother, Zhang Jiao, saying, "Mom, you're finally back! I've missed you so much!"
Zhang Jiao patted her son's back, feeling guilty for neglecting her son these past few days while only taking care of her father in the hospital.
"Oh, you've finally decided to come back." Lin Guodong walked into the house and said sarcastically.
They had agreed that she, as a daughter who had married out of the family, should mind her own business.
But in the past few years, whether it was her father or her mother who were hospitalized, they would rush to the hospital to take care of them whenever they called her.
Fortunately, he managed all the money in the house, and Zhang Jiao only went to the hospital to take care of him; she didn't take any money.
Zhang Jiao: "..."
"How is your father?" Lin Yongnian asked as he entered the house.
Zhang Jiao shook her head and said, "The doctor said it will happen in the next day or two. I came back so that Guodong and Junjun can go to the hospital tomorrow to see Dad one last time."
Ever since food poisoning damaged their kidneys, Zhang Jiao's parents' health has been deteriorating year by year, especially her father, whose poor health and lack of dietary restrictions have made the situation even worse.
I have to go to the hospital several times a year, but this time it's too late. The doctor said that I have multiple organ failure and it's only a matter of the next day or two.
Lin Guodong: "..."
Lin Yongnian frowned and said, "Then Guodong and Junjun really should go and take a look."
Although they had all lost contact with the Zhang family over the years except for Zhang Jiao, Lin Guodong hadn't seen his father-in-law and mother-in-law for a long time.
But since this girl is about to die, the son-in-law really should go and check on her.
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