Career in civil service losing its shine

Government workers top list of those looking for work in real estate, finance and the Internet

Applicants go through last-minute preparations before the civil servant recruitment exam in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province on Nov 30, 2014. [Photo/IC]

A career in the civil service, which was once considered as stable as an "iron rice bowl", is now being ditched by an increasing number of people.

According to Zhaopin.com, a Chinese human resource website, 34 percent more civil servants this year are considering leaving their jobs in the traditional job-hunting season that started in February.

More than 10,000 people working for government or government-funded institutions have signed up on the website looking for jobs in the first three weeks after Feb 25 - more than any other group of job-hoppers.

Positions at property developers, financial institutions and Internet-related firms are among the careers favored by job seekers.

"Those industries are largely influenced by policies, so the industries urgently need some people who are familiar with the government's working system and policies, and know how to communicate with officials," said a report by Zhaopin.

A civil servant from a ministry-level government agency who only wanted to be identified by the name Gong, told China Daily that the trend is spreading from high-level officials to those who have less than three years of work experience.

"In the past two years, we saw more people leaving than before. First, some senior-level officials found high-paid jobs with private enterprises, then gradually some who have worked less than three years quit work," he said. "And this trend has put pressure on government bodies. As far as I know, there are some limitations on quitting."

Huang Ruoshan, Zhaopin's senior career consultant, said that previously very few officials would seek other jobs. However that has changed because of the ongoing anti-corruption campaign.

"After all, some 'special benefits' were cut," said Huang, adding that some were not satisfied with promotions and the work environment.

"Civil servants in China are in an elite, with the majority of them skilled and with good education backgrounds. However, when working in government, they felt their potential was not fully realized."

"Now, there are more positions with better pay on the market, and some civil servants will make their own choices," said Huang.

At the same time, civil servant positions are less appealing. Last year, about 1.4 million people applied for government jobs and almost 900,000 took the entrance exam - both about 100,000 fewer than in 2013 and the lowest figures in five years.

A report from social website Renren.com said only 7.8 percent of graduates this year want to work for government. At the same time, 29.4 percent want to work for foreign-invested companies and 25.5 percent want to work for State-owned enterprises.

"The most common reason I know for quitting a government job is the low pay," said Gong. "It is not only companies or research institutions that want skilled people, but government work also needs to attract top talent."

"Besides, the way that governments operate should also be reformed," added Gong. "It is too outdated and totally different from the way we learned at universities, especially those of us who came back from overseas. The potential of young civil servants cannot be fully taken advantage of."

suzhou@chinadaily.com.cn