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Abstract “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” （sima fenfei） was a new approach to the distribution of surpluses for private enterprises and public-private joint ventures in 1953 after China entered the period of planned economic construction. As early as in the “Five-anti” campaign, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China had considered using the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” method to redefine the amount of profits for enterprises in order to balance the interests of all parties. The promulgation of the “Interim Regulations on Public-Private Joint Ventures in Industry” in 1954 signified that the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” approach formed a complete and unified regulation and was established in the form of law.
The overall requirement of the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” approach was to conduct the distribution on the basis of paying the national income tax and making up for the losses of the enterprises in the previous period. It should neither affect the normal production and operation of the enterprise while also ensuring that the capitalists obtained certain profits. At the same time, it should be conducive to the socialist transformation of the enterprise. Based on this distribution spirit, the attitudes of grassroots organizations and both the public and private sides towards the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” were different. Therefore, how to effectively carry out the consultation work on surplus distribution and coordinate all parties to promote the implementation of the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” approach became the key to the smooth implementation of this approach. The consultation between the public and private sectors under the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” approach was carried out relying on the board of directors under the premise that the public side mastered the internal plan. The investigation of the actual situation of the enterprise by the public side and the understanding of the opinions of the private sectors were the keys to the smooth holding of the consultation meeting and also an important basis for the formulation and adjustment of the internal plan. The nature of the board of directors was a deliberative body for both the public and private sectors, but it did not have the final decision-making power. The uploading and releasing of enterprise resolutions and the operation and management still required the responsibility of the public side. This also indicates that the transfer of the leadership of the enterprise under the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” approach should not be based on the proportion of the public side’s equity or the number of seats or positions on the board of directors.
The distribution share of the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” was a dynamic adjustment process based on the proportion of income tax, and the proportions of the other three aspects were adjusted accordingly as the share of income tax changed. The content of the “one horse (ma)” of dividends and bonuses roughly changed from “25% for capitalists during the private period” to “dividends and bonuses could account for 25%” and then to “about 25% was distributed according to equity between the public and private sectors after the public-private joint venture”. This reflects that the income of the private side was gradually restricted. In public-private joint venture enterprises, the “one horse” of dividends and bonuses could be subdivided into income from public shares, remuneration, and income from private shares. The income of private shares included government bonds and actual cash disbursements. Due to the lag in the payment of government bonds, what the private side actually received was the remuneration for private shares and actual cash. It can be said that in the case of the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits”, where the working class was the better beneficiaries”, the income of the public side in the distribution of dividends and bonuses were also the main beneficiaries. This is also a manifestation of the growth of socialist elements in joint ventures and the gradual restriction of the income of the private side.
The study of the “Four-sectors Sharing Profits” plays an important role in correctly understanding the transfer process of leadership rights in joint ventures under the “utilization, restriction, and transformation”, the changes in the relationship between the public and private sectors, and the specific measures to restrict capitalist exploitation. It also provides a new perspective for in-depth understanding of the practical implementation process of the Communist Party of China’s policy of peaceful redemption.
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Published: 30 October 2024
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