China's leaders have long promised a better economic future but with growth stalling, competition is fierce for the available - from day laboring to skilled office jobs.
Together these economic challenges have caused a big spike in joblessness, particularly among young people. The unemployment rate for 16- to 24-year-olds hit a record 21 percent last month, although one economist thinks the real number may nearer to half.
Originally from Inner Mongolia, he has been coming to Beijing for years but finds it ever-harder to secure jobs. He said he often accepts lower pay rates than he would have earned five years ago. Zhong is part of the first generations of internal migrant workers, the people who left their homes in the regions in the 1990s and 2000s to build the high rises that now adorn cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou.While wages have risen for manual laborers, they haven’t kept up with inflation, and these workers face a bleak future, according to research that recently went viral and was quickly censored.
Workers often ask themselves, Qui said, relaying questions from her surveys: Where do I go when I’m old? Once sick, who can I depend on? When I can’t work any more, what will the future hold?At the other end of the job market are China’s new graduates. A record 11.6 million people left college this summer and began hunting for jobs. They are finding it a tough slog, with far too many applicants for even fewer jobs than usual.; others are taking whatever they can get.” job — 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Some of the young unemployed have started to jokingly describe themselves as being “full-time children” again, back home with their parents. They, like day laborers like Zhong, are feeling pessimistic about their prospects.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
China Insight: Shanghai, China’s Window to the World, Launches Shanghai GalaThe event, to be held this fall, will feature a red-carpet gala as well as a fashion exhibition of leading designers from around the world.
Read more »
China's Alibaba says will not join Ant Group share buybackChina's Alibaba Group said on Sunday it had decided not to participate in affiliate Ant Group's proposed repurchase of shares, but would maintain its shareholding in the company.
Read more »
Big Pharma Bets Big on ChinaDespite growing geopolitical risk, Western drugmakers are staying put in China—and that isn’t only down to the size of its market
Read more »
House Foreign Affairs chair: China ‘should be held to the same standards’ on climate changeHouse Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul said Sunday that the U.S. is allowing China to skirt climate change pledges as the rest of the developed world moves to combat emissions.
Read more »
China is sending zebrafish to the Tiangong space stationThe experiments using the fish will aid research into mitigating bone loss in astronauts.
Read more »