iieiiei1eWrkers - Leicester Research Archive - University of Leicester

The second problem arises from the class gap between myself and the
respondents as noted above. This had a real implication for my approach to
audience research. Respondents often felt that they have been 'fooled' after
they talked about their favourite stars and programmes. At other times, talks
on popular culture would be interrupted by one respondent who wanted the
group to return to more 'serious discussion'. In fact, this respondent is very
keen on popular culture herself and takes part in the plays produced by the
Union. But despite the close collaboration established during the sessions on
contradictions in the workplace and the activities of the union, the alliance
established on the basis of political discourse did not extend to discussions of
cultural practices. On the contrary, the division between these two spheres was
interwoven and played out in the research sessions.
10.1 From Peasantry to Working Class: Displacement and Transfonnation
This section briefly outlines the way in which displaced workers were
transformed through their practical experience of the contradictions of factory
life. The recruitment process and the pay-scales institutionalise a particular
structure of control which is co-ordinated with disciplinary measures and a
specific reginie of spatial and time distribution at work and in the dormitory.
Taken together, these structures constrain the means of communication and
transformation available to the workers.
The structural contradiction of the factory
Aporn Textile, incorporated in 1957, was orginally a weaving factory in the
eastern suburb of Bangkok. Its expansion to the present site in Sainutprakarn
in 1971-1972 included a 15 million baht investment for the new spinning
factory. Within a decade, its assets had grown from 65 million to 151 million
baht. In 1981, its net profits were 19 million baht. The major shareholders
are the Jirawatwong, Maekinpan (both are ethnic Chinese) and the Wong
(Singaporcan and Hongkongnese) families.
The workforce is divided into 1,300 shift-workers 83% of whom are women,
and 200 day-workers and staff. The majority of the workers are peasants from
the northeast and the central plain. Most of the shift-workers are primary
school leavers aged between 18-50. With 600 looms and 30,000 spindles it is
categorised as a large factory. Recently, the workforce was reduced by one
third due to the introduction of modern machinery. A weaver is now in
charge of 14 machines instead of 3-4 as in the past, and those in the spinning
mill work 60 spindles at a time.
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