On the afternoon of 1/8/2015 we visited the Quang Vinh ceramic factory in Bat Trang, near Hanoi. We learned how the workers used molds to mass-produce certain pottery designs. And we all observed the difficult working conditions inside the factory. The air we breathed was surely unhealthy; the work was clearly back-breaking, required intense focus, and obviously monotonous. We all agreed that you would have to pay us a fortune to entice us to work there, and even then we would probably quit within the week.
After visiting the factory we went inside the adjacent store where we could buy the finished products. We were amazed by both the beauty and the great deals! I bought several hand-painted vases, each costing no more than $4. If I had purchased an American-made vase of similar quality in Seagrove, NC (a hotbed of American pottery); I likely would have paid a price 10 times that. Why? Both places have great artists, great clay, and similar knowledge of ceramic production processes. The difference must come down to labor. The vase I paid $4 for was made by Vietnamese workers; the equivalent vase I might have purchased in Seagrove for $40 was made by American workers. I don’t know the actual wages for either the Vietnamese or the American pottery workers, but I do know that in 2013 the real per-capita GDP (in international $) for Vietnam was 5,126 while the corresponding measure for the U.S. was 51,471.
These two numbers are reliable estimates of the average incomes in the two societies. Why do Americans ceramic workers likely earn more, on average, than the Vietnamese ceramic workers? Is it because American workers have better skills, or are willing to work harder, than the Vietnamese? From what I can see, probably not; perhaps the difference comes down to choice. A worker in the Bat Trang ceramic factory is there because she has no better choice. No American would work there at Vietnamese wages. The typical American has many more choices, often times including the choice of not working.
Follow