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

In one of those warehouse-like buildings, Zhao Shuang, 30, hunches over a sewing machine and churns out women's business tops. About half a dozen others do the same.

Zhao came to Shenzhen to work about 10 years ago. Her husband is a construction worker. He and their five-year-old daughter live in Hubei. His parents help take care of their little one.

Zhao starts at 8 am, and usually pulls a 10-hour shift, six days a week. She says she makes 4,000 to 5,000 yuan a month, on par with the average wage for a university graduate in Beijing, which a survey by human resources provider Zhaopin last year found to be 4,746 yuan. But unlike many workers employed by big companies, she receives no healthcare or housing benefits.

Her boss, Lu Keqin, looks up from his machine to chime in.

"If they make more they earn more. When business is good and there's lots of work, they can make 10,000 yuan a month. They choose their hours, it's very flexible."

Zhao says she makes double in Shenzhen compared with what she can earn back home.

"I only see my child once or twice a year. It's really hard, I really miss her, but it's easier to make money here and I need to make money for her."

Her family story is a snapshot of the evolution of the Chinese worker. Her parents were poor farmers, she is a manufacturing worker, and she says her daughter will go to university.

"I'm just a migrant worker from a small village," she says. "I just want the best in life for my daughter."

Zhao's willingness to make personal sacrifices and work tirelessly for the good of her family is a characteristic of Chinese workers who are currently 30 or older, says Foxconn spokesman Liu. They are qualities that he believes are on the wane.