Every Trade Has a Master

Chinese skilled workers shine at international competition By Ji Jing

When the host announced that Ma Hongda had won gold in the Plastering and Drywall Systems category at the WorldSkills Competition 2022 Special Edition on October 23 in Bordeaux, France, Ma and other members of the Chinese team cheered with joy. This was China’s first ever gold medal in this skills category.

Back in China, news of Ma becoming world champion in plastering became one of the most trending news items online.

Many people think plastering and installing drywall systems do not require sound technical knowledge, but an international competition does not allow an operating error of more than 1 millimeter.

Ma is a student majoring in architectural decoration from Zhejiang Construction Technician College.

In 2017, after finishing junior middle school, Ma faced the choice of going to high school or vocational school. His father, a craftsman who makes doors and windows, suggested he learn a skill to make a living since he wasn’t excelling at school. “I prefer manual work to school work. So I gladly took my father’s advice and went to technical college,” Ma toldChina Youth Daily.

Ma was selected into the college’s center for training candidates for the WorldSkills Competition five years ago and he has trained hard to improve his skills and qualify for the competition.

Every morning at eight, he arrives at the center and trains more than seven hours. As he deals with cement,gypsum board, bricks and ceramic tiles every day, his clean clothes are often covered with putty powder and dust in less than half a day.

As he has to mobilize all the muscles of his body during training, especially those on his hands, he has worn out countless gloves. And to alleviate the pressure on his hand muscles caused by longtime practice,he needs to undergo acupuncture regularly.

Ma toldThe Beijing Timesthat many people think plastering is easy but the strength used to plaster every time differs and it requires contestants to accumulate experience from day-to-day practice.

As WorldSkills Competition has strict limit on contestants’ age, it means every contestant may have only one chance to take part in the competition in his or her lifetime. Therefore, Ma said he made up his mind to try his best to win medals at the competition this time.

Shen Wenqing from Hangzhou Qinggong Technical College takes part in the hairdressing competition at the WorldSkills Competition 2022 Special Edition in Helsinki, Finland, on October 20

Ma’s coach Xu Zhen has accompanied him throughout the competition in France.As a teacher from Zhejiang Construction Technician College, Xu has passed on his skills and experiences to Ma over the past few years.

Xu said the WorldSkills Competition has provided a platform for skilled youth worldwide to learn from each other and as a coach, he wants to bring new standards and techniques learned from the competition back to China to integrate with domestic standards and promote the whole industry’s development.

In Ma’s opinion, highly skilled technical workers are those who persist in their professional areas and make contributions to society. “No matter what industry they are engaged in, they will shine as long as they keep learning and are dedicated to their professions,” Ma said.

On October 15, Li Dexin won the nation’s first gold medal in cabinetmaking in the special edition of the WorldSkills Competition in Switzerland.

It’s the first time that a Chinese contestant has won first prize in this event since the nation started taking part in 2017.

Liu Xiaohong, China’s team leader of technical experts taking part in the cabinetmaking event, said competitors must make a piece of furniture following a given drawing in a 22-hour period—usually over four days. They must assemble, polish and install hardware to complete the furniture.

Li is a student with Jiangxi Environmental Engineering Vocational College and he started systematic training for the competition three years ago.

He has practiced from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day and heavy training has callused his hands.

Li Dexin from Jiangxi Environmental Engineering Vocational College at the cabinetmaking competition at the WorldSkills Competition 2022 Special Edition in Basel, Switzerland, on October 13

Li is from Nankang, a county in Ganzhou, Jiangxi Province known for furniture making. He has many family members and friends in the furniture industry. His dream was to learn furniture making and find a job as a carpenter in his hometown.However, after winning the competition, he has changed his mind. He wants to become a teacher at his college and train more carpenters.

Bright future

From 2011 to 2021, China has sent 179 contestants to take part in five WorldSkills Competitions, held biennially, winning 36 gold, 29 silver and 20 bronze medals.

According to a report on the career development of China’s WorldSkills Competition competitors by the Guangzhou Academy of Vocational and Technical Education, 73 percent of the 172 former competitors who took part in a survey have become vocational school teachers, playing important roles in passing down technical skills.

Recognized as the Olympic Games for skills competition, WorldSkills Competition 2022 Special Edition is the official replacement for WorldSkills Shanghai 2022, cancelled in May due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 60 skill competitions are held over 12 weeks in 15 countries and regions including Switzerland, Germany, France and Finland between September 7 and November 26.

As of October 24, the Chinese team had won 15 golds, three silvers and three bronzes in the already-completed 27 events, including cabinetmaking and 3D digital gaming art.

According to a release by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security,China has sent 36 competitors to compete in 34 events.

Great importance has been attached to vocational education in China in recent years and skilled workers have grown to be one of the main drivers behind China’s manufacturing and innovation development.

China will step up efforts in cultivating highly skilled talent to boost the country’s core competitiveness and optimize employment, according to a guideline released by the general offices of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council.

By the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan period(2021-25), the policy support and cultivation system for highly skilled talent will be optimized.

Meanwhile, skilled talent will account for more than 30 percent of the employed, while highly skilled personnel will account for one third of the skilled by the end of 2025, the guideline said.

By 2035, the scale of skilled workers will continue to grow while the number and structure of highly skilled workers should meet the requirements of realizing socialist modernization, it said.

The guideline called for efforts to optimize the training system and strengthen policy support. It further highlighted the current need for the intensified training of highly skilled workers, giving full play to vocational schools in teaching them.

The guideline also noted that the employment mechanism and the occupational standard and evaluation system for the workers should be optimized. BR