The Chinese working class is a big loser under the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic

by CHAN Ka Wai

Labour organizations in China have gradually released various studies about the labour conditions in China under the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic. This article is to summarize the recent two researches in Foshan, Guangdong and in Zhengzhou, Henan. The study in Foshan was conducted in April and the one in Zhengzhou was conducted in May this year. The full texts of the two researches will be publicized later.

Both studies are online researches, so the data collected reflect more the opinions of young workers. Majority of the workers responding to the two researches are aged 26-45, 62.84% in Foshan and 64.1% in Zhengzhou.

If we count the workers under study aged 45 or below, the rate goes up to 87.91% in Foshan and to 75.2% in Zhengzhou. It seems that Guangdong is still more attractive to young workers. Both studies, to a certain extent, reveal the pictures of young peasant workers under the COVID-19 pandemic in both Foshan and Zhengzhou.

The Foshan study covers 331 workers and the Zhengzhou one, 262 workers. In terms of gender, the ratio of male and female is 53.78% (178 workers): 46.22%  (153 workers) in the study in Foshan and 52.3% (137 workers):47.7% (125 workers) in that in Zhengzhou. The responding rate is similar to the gender ratio of the total labour population in China, 56%:44% (figure in 2019). 

Both studies are cross-industry studies, not addressing to any specific industry. In Foshan, the biggest sector of the workers under study are still in the manufacturing industry, but it only occupies 32.3%. In other words, around 70% of the workers under study in Foshan are not working in the manufacturing industry. In the study in Zhengzhou, the workers in the services industry goes up to 42.4%, and the workers in the manufacturing industry, 23.3%.

 

Table 1 The basic information of the workers under study (by industry)

Industries

Foshan (%)

Zhengzhou (%)

Manufacturing production, Transport,

and Labor-intensified Work

32.33%

23.30%

Services Industry

23.26%

42.40%

Commercial Field

2.72%

2.70%

Agriculture or Fishery

0.00%

0.80%

Professionals or Technicians

14.80%

11.10%

Clerical

10.57%

6.50%

Management

2.42%

0.80%

Others

13.90%

11.50%

 

The young working population in China has gradually shifted from the manufacturing industry to services and clerical works. More than 10% of the workers under both studies are even working in the professional and technical fields. It shows that the educational level of young workers in China is going up increasingly.

The two studies also touch an issue how many workers change their jobs during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. In Foshan, only 34 workers out of the 331 workers (10.27%) has changed jobs during the pandemic period. Only 3% of the workers states clearly that they leave their previous enterprises because of the pandemic. But if we also count the reasons which could be related to the pandemic, “Occupational injuries/diseases”, Long-time wages arrears” and “Difficult to operate/redundancy”, the rate goes up to 36%.

 

Table 2: The reasons why you leave your previous enterprise (in Foshan)

Reasons

%

COVID-19 Pandemic

3

Occupational injuries/diseases

12

Long-time wages

arrears of the enterprises

6

Enterprises’ difficulty

to operate/redundancy

15

Personal reasons

44

Never change job before

14

Others

6

 

The situation in Zhengzhou is more serious. Around 10% of the workers indicate that they have changed job during the pandemic period because of the pandemic.

 

Table 3: The COVID-19 pandemic as a reason of causing you to leave your previous enterprise (in Zhengzhou)

Reasons

 Total(%)

Male(%)

Female(%)

Wages arrears

8

0

18.2

Redundancy

11

13.3

9.1

Economic difficulties

27

26.7

27.3

Bankruptcy, closure or de-registration

of the previous enterprises

31

40.0

18.2

Others

23

20.0

27.3

 

The data of the Zhengzhou study shows that women workers suffer more from wage arrears (18.2%, but no male workers) and male workers (40%, but women workers, 18.2% only) lose their jobs because of the bankruptcy of the enterprises. In fact, bankruptcy of enterprises is the major reason for the workers in Zhengzhou to change their jobs. The male-dominated industry could be the manufacturing industry. The research indirectly shows that the COVID-19 pandemic could have adversely affected the manufacturing industry in China.  

Although the total number of the workers who have changed their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic is still small (around 13 workers in Foshan and around 27 workers in Zhengzhou), it is a signal indeed. We have not identified how seriously the pandemic has affected enterprises, the damage to enterprises. and then to workers, in China, should not be over-sighted.

The Zhengzhou study clearly shows that the pandemic has severely affected the workers’ lives. More than 70% of the workers under study in Zhengzhou share that the COVID-19 pandemic has made their lives more difficult. The situation of male workers is more difficult than that of female workers. 22.6% of the male workers share that the pandemic has made their lives severely difficult, but only 13.6% of the women workers share so.

 

Table 4.1: The impact of the COVID-19 of workers’ lives (in Zhengzhou)

How do you assess the impact of the pandemic on your life?

 

Whole(%)

Men(%)

Women(%)

Made my life severely difficult

18.3

22.6

13.6

Made my life relatively difficult

53.4

51.8

55.2

No impact

15.3

16.8

13.6

Improved my life

8.0

5.8

10.4

Others

5.0

2.9

7.2

 

Table 4.2 : The impact of the COVID-19 of workers’ lives (in Zhengzhou)

How do you feel in the face of the pandemic?

 

Whole(%)

Men(%)

Women(%)

Worries to be unemployed

33.2

35.8

30.4

Worries to be infected by the coronavirus

48.5

48.2

48.8

Worries to wages arrears

24.0

24.8

23.2

Others

45.8

16.1

31.2

 

In comparisons with the labour conditions before the pandemic, the picture comes clearer.

 

Table 5.1: The changes in the working time

 

Working time

 

Foshan (%)

Zhengzhou (%)

Greatly increased

7.55

9.5

Mildly increased

10.57

14.1

No change

49.24

51.9

Mildly decreased

20.54

14.1

Greatly decreased

12.08

10.3

 

Table 5.2: The changes in the wage

 

Wage

 

Foshan (%)

Zhengzhou (%)

Greatly increased

1.51

1.5

Mildly increased

11.18

5.0

No change

52.87

51.9

Mildly decreased

20.24

24.8

Greatly decreased

14.20

16.8

 

Table 5.3: The changes in the workload

 

Workload

 

Foshan (%)

Zhengzhou (%)

Greatly increased

10.57

10.7

Mildly increased

21.45

24.8

No change

41.39

43.5

Mildly decreased

17.52

13.4

Greatly decreased

9.06

7.6

 

Many workers in the two places (around 35% in Foshan and around 40% in Zhengzhou) suffer from the reduction of wages. It may be caused by the drop of working hours. More than 30% of the workers in Foshan and more than 35% in Zhengzhou complain of increasing workload after they resume to work. The Foshan study also raises the question of the increase/decrease in manpower in enterprises. Around 20% of the workers in both studies state that there is a growth of manpower in their enterprises, but around 40% of the workers in both places complain of the reduction of manpower. The reduction of manpower in enterprises not only increases the workload of workers, but also make them more worried to unemployment (more than 30% of the workers have such worries in Zhengzhou).

In conclusion, although the COVID-19 pandemic has not created big number of unemployment due to enterprises’ redundancy or bankruptcy, but has seriously affected workers' lives both in Foshan and Zhengzhou, or we could say, the workers in the two Provinces, Guangdong and Henan. Generally speaking, workers get less payment and suffer from more workload.

The two researches only review the working conditions of those workers who are working, but do not address to the issue of unemployment due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a serious issue we should study later because China is facing serious unemployment (unemployment rate, 9%-11%).

 

Related article:

Survey report of work resumption condition during the COVID-19 outbreak in China: Fewer than 30% of employees received normal wage payment during the delayed work resumption period

Research report phase 2.0 of work resumption situation in China: Private firms may become the most important section in employment maintenance

 

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