GUANGZHOU: Yu Yongjie has found it easier to hire new workers this year.

"For us small factories, the labor-shortage problem isn't so serious this year," said Yu, who runs a hardware factory in Panyu District of the southern mainland city of Guangzhou.

The Pearl River Delta region, which is home to a vast majority of manufacturing businesses, has reportedly been hit hard by the labor shortage for years.

"Old workers leave and new ones come," Yu explained. "This was very common for us small businesses in the past. But this year, most old workers still stay here."

A report released by the Guangdong provincial labor authority recently indicated that the labor-shortage pressure relatively eased in the first quarter of this year thanks to more job-hunters.

According to the report, more than 1.76 million people have been to job markets in Guangdong in the three months, an increase of 7 percent over the same period last year.

Meanwhile, enterprises in the Pearl River Delta region have provided more than 2.2 million job vacancies in the first quarter, down by 7.6 percent over the previous quarter.

"It means that each job seeker is being provided with 1.3 vacancies. The rising number of employees has helped eased the labor-shortage pressure," said Zhang Xiang, an official with the Guangdong Provincial Department of Labor and Social Security.

Moreover, an estimated 13 million migrant workers - who had to stay in Guangdong for the Spring Festival due to harsh weather conditions that made their journey home impossible - also helped tackle the problem, Zhang said.

However, a number of large-sized manufacturing businesses are still feeling the labor shortage pinch as they rely heavily on intensive labor resources.

Guangdong Aihua Sweater & Craft Co Ltd, one of the leading garment and toy manufacturers based in Shantou of eastern Guangdong, is one of them.

Cai Aihua, the company's general manager, said: "Actually, we found it hard to hire skilled workers many years ago. The problem continued especially after the introduction of the new Labor Contract Law this year."

(HK Edition 04/28/2008 page2)