-
Cheng Yum Kwai
Cheng Yum Kwai
Senior Manager, Production, Amoy Food Limited
Sex: Male Birthyear: 1947 Age at Interview: 63 Education: Senior Secondary Occupation: Manager Theme: Industry As both the Cheng and Huang families who owned Amoy in those days were Christian, the company held Sunday school at the Amoy Industrial Estate throughout the 1950s. Presided over by members of the two families, each class was attended by the children of Amoy staff. After the Sunday school, workers would take firewood away from the Amoy Industrial Estate and fetch them back home on wooden carts.
Title Workers' children worshipped and played at factory Date 12/08/2010 Subject Industry Duration 50s Language Cantonese Material Type Audio Collection Oral History Archives Repository Hong Kong Memory Project Note to Copyright Copyright owned by Hong Kong Memory Project Accession No. LKF-CYK-HLT-001 On the eve of the Hang Lung Group’s buying into Amoy, Cheng Yum Kwai was vice chairman of the Staff Welfare Association. When the Sime Darby Group sold its shares to Hang Lung, the founding owners Cheng and Huang families were not informed of it. The majority of employees disapproved Hang Lung’s acquisition. Representing the Staff Welfare Association, Cheng Yum Kwai negotiated with Hang Lung’s directors and conveyed the views and emotion of the staff. When Hang Lung eventually took over Amoy, Cheng Yum Kwai worried that his new employer might fire him because of this. Happily, Hang Lung’s directors chose to bury the hatchet, forget old grudges and give trust to Cheng Yum Kwai.
Title Fighting on behalf of his fellows: ‘I think it will be game over very soon！’ Date 12/08/2010 Subject industry Duration 1m20s Language Cantonese Material Type Audio Collection Oral History Archives Repository Hong Kong Memory Project Note to Copyright Copyright owned by Hong Kong Memory Project Accession No. LKF-CYK-HLT-002 When Cheng Yum Kwai began to work with Amoy in 1966, the company was still a family enterprise respectively managed by the Wongand Cheng families. Amoy’s managing director Wong Tuk Sau adopted a fairly strict and uncompromising management style. Wong Tuk Sau lived in the manager’s residence in Amoy Industrial Estate. Whenever employees committed any kind of inappropriate behaviour, he would immediately impose fines or make deductions from their salaries. Staffs were very scared of him.
Title Paternalistic leadership: ‘Family business was characterized by boss dictatorship.’ Date 12/08/2010 Subject industry Duration 1m1s Language Cantonese Material Type Audio Collection Oral History Archives Repository Hong Kong Memory Project Note to Copyright Copyright owned by Hong Kong Memory Project Accession No. LKF-CYK-HLT-003 Cheng Yum Kwai recalled that life at the staff quarters was harmonious that no secrets could be kept among residents. Everyone knew each other’s salaries and bonuses. Each block had its own Welfare Committee.
Title Harmonious life in staff quarters Date 12/08/2010 Subject industry Duration 40s Language Cantonese Material Type Audio Collection Oral History Archives Repository Hong Kong Memory Project Note to Copyright Copyright owned by Hong Kong Memory Project Accession No. LKF-CYK-HLT-004 Cheng Yum Kwai joined Amoy in 1966 and has now been working with the company for over 45 years. While still a youngster, he started his career at the very bottom and gradually worked his way up to become manager of the engineering department. Amoy’s managers were often specially recruited from outside, and internal promotion of employees like Cheng Yum Kwai was very rare. Always modest, Cheng Yum Kwai often mocked himself as having the lowest academic qualification among all Amoy managers. Today, he says that he feels fortunate that even though Amoy has changed ownership several times, he has always received generous remunerative treatment from each new investor. As a result, his sense of loyalty to Amoy endures to this day.
Title A smooth career path: ‘I have the lowest academic qualification of any Amoy manager. The most useless one！’ Date 12/08/2010 Subject industry Duration 1m39s Language Cantonese Material Type Audio Collection Oral History Archives Repository Hong Kong Memory Project Note to Copyright Copyright owned by Hong Kong Memory Project Accession No. LKF-CYK-HLT-005