Inclusion Factory helps disadvantaged join society
Print Edition
Comfortable and bright, the Inclusion Factory with operation partitions clearly arranged and modern equipment set up, is where Yao Shengjie, who was diagnosed with autism at the age of three, now works.
“I never thought that my son would get a job. Since he was enrolled, he started to have colleagues and friends, greatly improving his cognitive ability and social skills,” said Yao’s father.
In 2003, Yao was diagnosed with infantile autism. After receiving vocational training from a special education school, he came to work for the Inclusion Factory, a Sino-German joint venture based in Suzhou City in east China’s Jiangsu Province.
“Yao had some repetitive behaviors when he first came here. We formulated his work schedule. Now he does well in his routine jobs and shows great progress in adapting to temporary changes of his routines,” said Wang Dan, Yao’s trainer.
There are 39 other full-time employees with developmental disabilities, providing parts processing services for industries including cars and electrical appliances.
Yao’s father was surprised to see the changes. “He started reaching out to others. When I chatted with customers at my car repair shop, he would introduce himself. The benefits of his job outside the workplace really shocked me,” he said.
One of the factory’s founders and general manager of Zollner Electronics (China) Co Ltd, Erik Breslein, recalled the establishment of the factory originated from a sudden idea during a dinner with his friend, Thilo Koeppe, who once served as the chairman of Taicang Roundtable. Most TRT members are from small- and medium-sized German enterprises.
In China, there are about 85 million people with disabilities and the group has trouble finding employment.
In 2014, the warm-hearted German entrepreneurs decided to learn from their familiar “Lebenshilfe model” in Germany to set up a factory where the handicapped can better integrate into society through employment.
They were supported by the local government in China, with many Chinese entrepreneurs lending a helping hand.
“We all have a good time here and the work we do is also of great value. Some enterprises came to us to place orders. The career is promising and we will have a bright future,” said Yao.
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