中國貿易與利潤分配：英國東印度公司廣州商館職員的薪資與福利（1786-1834）

China Trade and Profit Distribution: The Salaries and Benefits of the Canton Factory Staff of the English East India Company, 1786-1834

1780年代以來，英國東印度公司（English East India Company, 1600-1874）亞洲商貿網絡裡，中國日益成為最重要的市場之一，每年公司從中國（廣州）貿易獲利十分可觀，如何分配利潤成為公司和僱員雙方皆關切的議題之一。公司董事會希望一方面給予廣州商館（Canton factory）職員合理的薪酬和福利；另一方面亦兼顧公司利益、職員工作效率以及壓制私商（private merchant）發展等目的。本文梳理1786至1834年間廣州商館職員薪資和福利相關制度的演變經過，探究不同時期董事會如何處理員額編制、佣金、休假給薪、「個人貿易」（private trade）等相關議題，並討論政策規劃時的各種考量以及相關決策的影響；文中亦比較商館職員與公司各地組織、英國社會不同階層間的薪酬差異，以了解此時英人眼中，來華經商對財富積累的助益。此外，也嘗試從公司在華職員的薪資措施去檢視此一時期公司面臨的問題，認為當中實際上反映出公司決策的保守、侷限和創新不足，顯示其無法有效處理十九世紀新的社會變遷與海外貿易局勢，應也是最終讓出中國商業特權的原因之一。

From the 1780s, China gradually became an important market for the English East India Company (hereafter, the ＂Company＂) in its Asian trading networks, and the Company received great profits from the China (Canton) trade. The directors were expected to offer their staff reasonable salaries and benefits, not least to suppress the development of private merchants. This article analyzes the changes in staff rewards between 1786 and 1834, as well as exploring how the directors discussed and dealt with such important issues as the numbers of staff, commissions, leave payments, ＂private trade,＂ and the like. Also, this article compares the salary scales of factory staff to different social classes of British society and other employees within the Company, thus highlighting how the China trade helped people who came to China accumulate wealth. Finally, this article also examines the problems that the Company faced through the Canton staff’s pay policies. In fact, the conservatism of pay policies, their limitations, and the lack of innovation were revealed through inspections which show that the Company could not deal with efficiently with the social changes and overseas trading situations of the time. This illuminates how the Company finally lost its China monopoly finally as well.