0:00:02 > 0:00:08Please note: we are currently unable to insert accents, etc, in the following subtitles.
0:00:12 > 0:00:17Zhu Zhenghui is one of China's 60 million disabled people.
0:00:17 > 0:00:22He and more than a dozen others in his village suffer from restricted growth.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25Determined to get a job and a better life,
0:00:25 > 0:00:28Zhu longed to escape to the city.
0:00:28 > 0:00:32By chance, he met a journalist who put him in touch with a factory
0:00:32 > 0:00:34employing disabled people in Chengdu.
0:00:36 > 0:00:40It was the start of a new life.
0:00:50 > 0:00:54Today Zhu is a unit manager at the White Horse Printing Press.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00The factory produces every kind of print product
0:01:00 > 0:01:03- documents, tickets, books and magazines.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08The majority of workers are disabled.
0:01:17 > 0:01:19Zhu's job is quality control,
0:01:19 > 0:01:25and when there are deadlines to meet his disability is an added pressure.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53Director of the printing press is Chen Si Ming.
0:01:55 > 0:01:57She's known to everyone as Mama Chen,
0:01:57 > 0:02:00and the factory is her life's work.
0:02:03 > 0:02:05In the early 1980s, the White Horse Press
0:02:05 > 0:02:10was a tiny state collective on the edge of collapse.
0:02:10 > 0:02:14It already employed some disabled people.
0:02:15 > 0:02:19Mrs Chen, a staunch supporter of disability rights,
0:02:19 > 0:02:24saw the chance to take it over, and bring in even more disabled workers.
0:02:52 > 0:02:54And proved it they have.
0:02:54 > 0:02:58The factory has grown from little more than a shed
0:02:58 > 0:03:02to 3,000 square metres of workshops with some 60 modern machines.
0:03:04 > 0:03:08And its greatest achievement, - a satisfied workforce.
0:03:09 > 0:03:11But these workers are the lucky ones.
0:03:11 > 0:03:16In many ways, the Whitehorse Press is a survivor from a previous era.
0:03:18 > 0:03:23China's rapid changeover to a market-driven economy with market-driven values
0:03:23 > 0:03:29has left hundreds of thousands of disabled people jobless - forced to scratch a living.
0:03:30 > 0:03:32New training schemes are being set up
0:03:32 > 0:03:36but millions miss out and have no income at all.
0:03:40 > 0:03:44In towns and cities everywhere, begging is a common sight.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50These young people have no future.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56The government is now trying to force all companies
0:03:56 > 0:04:01to take on and train a small percentage of disabled people.
0:04:01 > 0:04:04But at the same time, state-run factories,
0:04:04 > 0:04:08struggling to make a profit have been making workers redundant.
0:04:09 > 0:04:14The White Horse Press owes its survival to Mama Chen's fighting spirit.
0:04:33 > 0:04:36Monday morning at the printing press - and a general meeting.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40A Communist anthem kicks off proceedings,
0:04:40 > 0:04:43something of a rarity in factories these days.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45THEY SING
0:04:58 > 0:05:02This morning Mrs Chen reminds her workers of their production targets.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05Just recently they've been falling behind.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19Over the years the printing press has been showered with awards
0:05:19 > 0:05:23for its contribution to the cause of the disabled.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29It's a model of old-fashioned Communist values -
0:05:29 > 0:05:34strong leadership from the top and a commitment to caring for the workers.
0:05:38 > 0:05:45Mama Chen tries to create a sense of family in the factory, but it isn't easy.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50Cai Zhiying has been employed here for more than ten years
0:05:50 > 0:05:53and supervises the work of the deaf group.
0:06:52 > 0:06:56Xiao Xia is one of a dozen deaf employees at the factory.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00She's in her early 30s and with Mama Chen's encouragement
0:07:00 > 0:07:03she's worked her way up to a good position in the firm.
0:07:05 > 0:07:06She says one day she'd like to manage
0:07:06 > 0:07:09a big supermarket like Carrefour.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13She knows it's just a dream.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19But taking on more responsibility has boosted her confidence,
0:07:19 > 0:07:22and she's also found herself a partner.
0:07:24 > 0:07:26Her husband, Xiao Feng, who's also deaf,
0:07:26 > 0:07:31works with a small team in one of the workshops.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34Initially Xiao Xia's parents were against the marriage,
0:07:34 > 0:07:36but Mrs Chen managed to win them over.
0:07:52 > 0:07:57Working at the factory has given the couple the means to an independent life.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00Between them they can earn about £150 a month,
0:08:00 > 0:08:03a good wage by local standards.
0:08:06 > 0:08:09They've got a flat in one of Chengdu's older compounds.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13Once railway-workers lived here, like Xiao Feng's parents.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16When they were given the opportunity to buy their flat
0:08:16 > 0:08:19they decided to pass it on to the newly-weds.
0:08:22 > 0:08:26Tonight Xiao Feng's parents have been invited to dinner.
0:08:29 > 0:08:34Xiao Feng's mother is delighted with her son's progress at the printing press,
0:08:34 > 0:08:37but fearful lest one day it's forced to close.
0:08:56 > 0:08:59Xiao Feng's mother is right to be concerned.
0:09:00 > 0:09:06Mama Chen is struggling to stay ahead of the growing competition from private firms.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11It's forced her to invest in a costly new colour printer
0:09:11 > 0:09:15that can achieve the results that her clients now expect.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19She does have some satisfied customers.
0:09:21 > 0:09:25But to make the machine pay for itself, they need to win new business.
0:10:07 > 0:10:11Cash-flow problems or not, Mrs Chen refuses to compromise her ideals.
0:10:13 > 0:10:16Especially when it comes to enriching the lives of her flock.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21It's October 1st, China's National Day,
0:10:21 > 0:10:24and a chance for a rather special treat.
0:10:24 > 0:10:30This is Chengdu's brand-new Panda Theme Park.
0:10:31 > 0:10:32Giant pandas are bred here
0:10:32 > 0:10:35and massive government investment has been poured into the park
0:10:35 > 0:10:39with the aim of turning it into the city's top tourist attraction.
0:10:49 > 0:10:50But amongst all the good spirits,
0:10:50 > 0:10:54there's a general feeling of concern for Mrs Chen.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58She's been seriously ill, and she's been talking of retirement.
0:12:07 > 0:12:12For today the firm's financial problems, and Mrs Chen's retirement,
0:12:12 > 0:12:14recede into the background.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18Yet the reality is that a downturn in the factory's fortunes
0:12:18 > 0:12:20could affect everyone's future.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27Xiao Feng wants to continue at the factory and learn new skills.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32Xiao Xia is keen to take on more administrative work.
0:12:35 > 0:12:37Cai Zhiying has a heart condition
0:12:37 > 0:12:40and relies on being able to work flexible hours.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45Zhu plans to stay at the factory as long as he can,
0:12:45 > 0:12:49and use his savings to move back to his village.
0:12:55 > 0:12:57Since he's been at the printing press
0:12:57 > 0:13:00Zhu's been sending money home regularly.
0:13:04 > 0:13:08His ties with his family, especially his two nieces, have strengthened.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16When he was young he was ridiculed and bullied.
0:13:16 > 0:13:21But now he's local boy made good, and he has a dream for the future.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:14:11 > 0:14:14Email subtitling@bbc.co.uk