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The dream and reality for young Chinese workers

2014-04-26 09:19

By Cai Muyuan (China Daily Europe)

The dream and reality for young Chinese workers

Yang Juxiang, 47, is one of the millions of migrant workers from the countryside chasing those higher wages in the cities.

In an old and cavernous Shenzhen factory, she sits at a table with five others. They box up pieces of filmy plastic that have been spat out by a noisy machine.

Originally from Sichuan province, Yang has been doing this job for 14 years.

"We don't know what we are making," she says. "We make things for China, we make things that are exported overseas."

She recently received a 200-yuan pay rise and now makes about 1,800 yuan a month for eight hours' work, six days a week.

Across the table from her, new employee Fu Yuefeng, 20, is learning the ropes.

He's a middle school drop out who loves Sylvester Stallone movies.

"My dream is I want to be a boss, any kind of boss," he says. "It's unrealistic. It will never happen."

The older women at the table cluck and disagree and offer encouragement. The numbers, and the experts, agree with these matrons of manufacturing. The future is generally looking brighter for young Chinese workers.

Zeng Xiangquan, head of the school of human resources at Renmin University of China, says despite a recent slump in China's manufacturing sector and concerns over flagging GDP growth, wages will continue rising on the back of strong demand for labor that's being exacerbated by the advent of a rapidly aging workforce.

"The Chinese economy will continue to grow, irrespective of whether it's at the double-digit rate like a few years ago, or at the current, single-digit rate," he says. "The labor force, especially those under the age of 24, is decreasing while demand for labor is increasing." 

Zeng says businesses in China are already competitively hiking wages, improving conditions and offering perks in a bid to attract a shrinking pool of workers.

But while the government is committed to improving wages and standards of living, Zeng says there's still a long way to go.

"The overall (average) wage in China is 10 percent of that in developed countries," he says.

While pay packets are increasing, some say the workload is going up, too.

The dream and reality for young Chinese workers The dream and reality for young Chinese workers The dream and reality for young Chinese workers
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