As a new force in the job market, China's 20-somethings seem emotional, lax in discipline, self-centred, and psychologically fragile. Meanwhile, they are also passionate, creative, self-motivating, and open-minded.

"We should not clearly say what are their advantages and what are their shortcomings," says Zhang Tingwen, vice president of ChinaHR.com, an on-line job website. "We had better say those are just their characteristics, which have two sides."

He explains that the current youths' focus on individual interests, on the one hand, make them less concerned with teamwork. On the other hand, this same trait impels them to be aggressive and devoted to their jobs.

These youth, usually called the post-1980s generation in China, are mainly born in one-child families, receive a good deal of attention and affection from parents and grandparents, and have grown up with China's opening to the world.

"They are living in a relatively loose environment in terms of the economy and household burdens and absorbed lots of western-styled concepts, which helped them build their unique personalities, very different from people born in the 1960s and even 1970s," Zhang says.

Expectations of youth

Feng Shuo, 24, graduated from university in 2003 and is working in a foreign-funded advertising company. He argues that he and cohorts his age are not as indulged a generation as most people think.

"Actually we are growing up under heavy pressure from childhood to adulthood," Feng says, elaborating that when they were children, there were high expectations from parents and grandparents that forced them to sacrifice playing time for arduous study.

"Say nothing of heavy burdens in middle school," he complains, explaining that job competition after graduating university is far more terrible.

Statistics from the Ministry of Education show the employment rate of university graduates stands at 70 per cent in the past two years, while the number of graduates was 3.48 million and 4.13 million in 2005 and 2006 respectively.

"Meanwhile, society is changing so rapidly, what we should do is take care of ourselves, which will contribute to both our families and societybut then people regard us as a self-centred generation," Feng says.

A survey released by ChinaHR.com in June showed university students eye self-development as their top priority along with finding jobs.

The survey, conducted from October 2005 to May 2006 and with over 90,000 valid votes collected, covered over 600 universities and colleges and 1,100 enterprises across the country.

ChinaHR.com's Zhang says that it further proves that the post-1980s generation pays great attention to their own interests. "On the other hand, if you give them space, they will devote themselves to jobs," he adds.

"What we want most is a combination of happy work and a happy life," says Feng's girlfriend, 23, who works as a civil servant in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The couple agrees they work hard during working hours, while overtime is unacceptable.

A comfortable and exciting working environment, with an acceptable compensation package, good training opportunities, and sound human relations are the most important elements when selecting a job.

A survey from Peking University, however, suggests graduates' salary expectations are too high, compared with the bottom line of employers.

In 2005, graduates with bachelor degrees hoped to get a monthly salary of 1,800 yuan (US$225), while the highest payment from surveyed companies was 1,550 yuan (US$194). The figures for masters' degree holders were 4,500 (US$563) and 2,700 yuan (US$363) respectively.

Payment wishes and actual salaries may frustrate the new workforce, says Lu Lingmin, senior HR director of Baidu.com. "The post-1980s youth should adjust their targets, considering they still have no work experience and there is serious competition in the job market."

Employers' efforts

As a senior HR consulting expert, ChinaHR.com's Zhang suggests that, given the unique characteristics of the post-1980s generation, employers should try to create an environment that stimulates passion among new employees.

ChinaHR.com itself employed over 100 graduates last year, who are mainly working for the sales department at the company.

According to Zhang, ChinaHR.com offers them compensation packages that are a little higher than the average level in the industry, and bonuses in line with their business performance.

In addition to technical and professional training, the company carries out team building training and encourages every young employee to air their opinions and express their views.

"No matter whether we like it or not, the future is those youth, and we should give them time to grow up," says Zhang, believing that each generation has its unique characteristics, which is a result of social evolution.

"There should be no simple judgment of good or bad on those guys," Lu agrees.