Rising labor shortage hits nation's key delta regions

Soaring living costs, low wages 'are to blame'

SHANGHAI / GUANGZHOU - The economy's twin engines, the Yangtze and Pearl river deltas, are spluttering due to a shortfall of migrant workers, especially in the service and manufacturing industries, amid soaring living costs and stagnant salaries.

"The labor shortage has hit customer services and the home service sectors since spring, and it is becoming more serious recently," said Chen Qian, the manager of a downtown employment agency in Shanghai.