unexpected blessing

Interview with Sister Zhou Peiliang, a former garment factory worker

▲Sister Zhou Peiliang operates this expensive computer to tack buttons to complete the suit jacket making process.

At the end of 1992, on a bitterly cold winter morning, with a nervous heart and slightly trembling hands, I raised my work identification card hanging around my neck and nodded to the guard. He looked carefully at the head in the photo, then looked me up and down, and finally smiled warmly, "It's your first day on the job!" Just like that, I stepped into the PBM suit factory, and so did I. A period of life as a garment factory worker.

Help anytime

That morning, I didn’t take the elevator to my workroom on the second floor. Instead, I chose to walk up the stairs, hoping to get some quiet time. What kind of people will you meet today? Is the job too difficult, too complex, or too boring? Will my colleagues reject me as a Chinese person? The most important thing is, can my physical strength bear it? During the thirty minutes of driving to the factory, these questions were running through my head. Now is the time to let go of your worries and seek help.

"God! Please give me enough strength."

God really listened to my cry and allowed me to encounter no major difficulties on my first day of work. What’s more, in the next eight and a half years, I often received His help at any time. I thought that when I came to work in a garment factory, I would just face one piece of clothing after another. Unexpectedly, God allowed me to receive care and love from many people, and I also had the opportunity to share God’s grace and love with them. I believe that when I give everything I have to God, God will bless me more.

I have lived in Taiwan for more than 30 years, taught at Jingmei Middle School, and my husband worked as a compiler for the China Central Radio Station. The family is in a stable and comfortable environment. But my husband has always wanted to go abroad and expand his horizons. When he had the opportunity, he immigrated to Libya in Africa. Later, I moved to the United States. Thinking that my children still needed a lot of care, I decided to put down the idea of working. When the children became adults and became independent, I was introduced by a brother in the "South Jersey Chinese Christian Church" where I belonged. , joined PBM Suit Company, doing button-making work.

Garment factory benefits

PBM, which is located under the Franklin Bridge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has a history of 60 to 70 years. At that time, it employed about 600 employees and cut suit jackets in a three-story factory. , sewing, and quality inspection. Depending on the grade, the finished products are either shipped to affordable shopping malls for sale, or sent to the fashion district of Fifth Avenue in New York. Some of the best products are even flown to Italy.

Nailing the front buttons of a suit is the last step in the entire production process and is also the key to quality. Whether there are three, four, six, or eight buttons, each position must be precise, and the color of the buttons and stitching must be exactly the same. Even whether the buttons are nailed through the lining is also important.

Some people still have negative impressions of garment factories, such as sweatshops (Sweatshops), which are shady, work overtime, and exploit labor. But at PBM, the sunlight shining through the surrounding glass and the lights on the ceiling illuminate the work hall on the second floor. The powerful air conditioning system controls the temperature of the entire work area to the most comfortable level, keeping it warm in winter and cool in summer. Working hours are from 7:30 in the morning to 4:00 in the afternoon. There is a half-hour lunch time at noon, and a snack time in the morning and afternoon. Unless we need to work overtime, the foremen will rush everyone to finish work as soon as four o'clock. The delay will be forty-five minutes at most, and we will be forced to go home.

The factory's welfare system is an important factor that attracts me to work here. In addition to a fixed salary and medical insurance, there are two weeks of vacation each year in winter and summer.

The hourly wage at that time was about 12 yuan, and if you worked overtime on weekends or overtime, you could still get 15 yuan, which was pretty good compared to the minimum wage of 6 yuan an hour. Every Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, and Father's Day, the company will give away some small gifts. What excites me the most is the annual suit auction; often a suit priced at 300 to 400 yuan can be bought for 20 to 30 yuan. I even bought a few sets for pastors. !

As for the work itself, it was effortless at all. Buttoning is not done stitch by stitch, but done entirely by computer, so the specifications of the finished product can be accurate and consistent, and the output can be large and fast.

After three weeks of training, I became proficient in the operation and expected myself to do my best. Therefore, I was praised by the quality control inspectors and foremen; I was even sent to New York for display to represent the company's suit production level. Most of the unique items are made by me. In the past eight and a half years, apart from being under a lot of pressure because of rushing to ship goods, I have never had any complaints about my eyesight deteriorating or back pain!

I suffer from congenital hematopoietic insufficiency and have always been anemic. When I started this job, I really didn’t know if my physical strength could sustain it. I prayed to God to give me enough strength every day. Unexpectedly, my health improved and my face became rosy. Maybe it’s because of my regular lifestyle and normal diet; I even believe that God answered my prayer!

exotic friendship

My colleagues and I live in harmony, like a big family, which is also God’s grace. The boss is Jewish. He visits various departments from time to time and chats with the employees. He is very cordial. The Italian general manager and my direct supervisor are also very considerate of the employees. Whenever I complete a "sample" that carries a heavy responsibility, they will come over to hug me and express their sincere thanks to me.

Once I got sick and had a fever and didn't go to work for three days. The plumber even called me to say hello and asked me to see a doctor. He knew that I was a Christian and even said that he would pray for me, which moved me very much.

There are many Hispanic and Italian employees with Catholic backgrounds in the company, and we often greet each other with "May God bless you." They fear God, are sincere to people, and are serious about their work. They are my role models.

Two inspectors, Josephine and Frances, were particularly close to me. When we meet, we will greet you warmly, hug or kiss. During the peak season, Francie would always bring me a basket of home-grown, freshest green-skinned figs as a gift. They also often invited me to attend the birthday parties of their Italian employees, treating me as family. I found that Italians are quite similar to us Chinese. They also like to eat and drink when they get together, and the taste of fried rice is also similar. My biggest discovery is: they also like to eat tripe!

Sow gospel seeds

There are also about a hundred Chinese employees in the garment factory, from mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, and they chat together during breaks. Although I have lived in the United States for so long, I always feel more at home when I can hear the local accent. After getting to know them well, we also had the opportunity to talk about their faith; from the Buddha statues and amulets they wear around their necks, we can see their Buddhist and Taoist backgrounds. In response to hearing the gospel, some people simply refused, others made irresponsible remarks, and some took the initiative to borrow gospel publications from me to read at home (I told them there was no need to return them).

There is a couple from Nanjing who have a good relationship with us, and we were once invited to eat their specialty dumplings. We later lost contact, but we still sent them every issue of CITIC magazine. Although I don’t know their reaction, I still believe that the Holy Spirit can touch people’s hearts, and the result is in God’s hands.

The turnover of Chinese employees is high. Some were fired because they were still unable to operate independently after the training period, and a large number of them were transferred to Chinese garment factories. Because remuneration in Chinese garment factories is paid in cash, and working hours can be extended, the wages received will also increase accordingly. That’s why a colleague I just met often disappears again not long after.

I often ask God to allow me to use my concern for them, my dedication to my work, and my enthusiasm for the gospel when I get along with them, to become a channel for them to know God. I remember Xiao Han (pseudonym) from Shanghai. When I looked for opportunities to encourage her and care for her with words from the Bible, it was like hitting a wall and being rejected and evaded. I know her rejection mentality, but I am unwilling to give up. Who knows when she will leave PBM and when she will hear the gospel again? There is no never-ending feast. Xiao Han did leave the company later.

In the late 1990s, a trend of leisure spread to businesses large and small. It was originally a once-a-week "Casual Friday" (Casual Friday, you can wear casual clothes to work every Friday, no formal shirt or suit is required), and gradually extended to "Daily Casual Friday", resulting in the demand for suits Sharp decrease.

PBM finally ended production in Philadelphia in 2001 and moved the factories to Mexico and Eastern Europe. I also had to say goodbye to Josephine, Francie, and many "family members" in foreign countries. Although I feel reluctant to give up, God teaches me to count the grace. During these more than 3,000 days, God has blessed me abundantly, whether it was finances, health, or even experiences in getting along with all ethnic groups.

unexpected surprise

The work of PBM was over, and I started another season in my life. I arranged to attend Bible study, prayer and other gatherings every day, so that I could have more time to serve God. The Faith, Hope and Love Church in Philadelphia often holds special gatherings and invites well-known pastors and scholars to give lectures. My husband and I like these special lectures very much. That day, we also participated with the intention of learning, but God prepared a surprise for us.

During the break at the party, a familiar voice suddenly penetrated the noise around me, "Sister Zhou!" I looked back and saw a fair face with a gentle smile, but there was a faint twinkle in my eyes. Tears. I was greatly surprised, it was Xiao Han!

"Why are you here?"

"This is my church. My spouse and I believed in the Lord, were baptized, and became children of God."

It turned out that not long after she left PBM, her husband lost his job and her father also suffered a stroke at this time. At the lowest point in her life, Xiao Han recalled that I once said to her: "The end of man is the beginning of God." So she came to the "Faith, Hope and Love Church" near her home and began to search for the God I had introduced to her. Of course, God promises to “seek and you will find” (see Matthew 7:7), and now the couple serves and worships God together. The seeds sown many years ago have grown and thrived under God’s watering.

Working in PBM Garment Factory for so many years, I have gained many rich life experiences. But seeing not just one, but two lives changed was a blessing I never expected.

Journalist profile