China faces structural mismatch in labour market as interest in manufacturing falls, amid record high youth unemployment

As the country transitions towards becoming a developed economy, fewer youths want to enter the manufacturing sector, which could lead to shortage of workers in the industry in the future. 

Professor Zhang Jun, dean of the School of Economics at Fudan University, said that China is facing a long-term low wage problem. One way to address the labour mismatch, he said, is for wage growth to be linked to nominal GDP growth.

STRUGGLING TO LAND FIRST JOB

Posing as corpses in graduation gowns is a new trend among graduates on social media, as college graduation season sweeps through China.

According to the youth, it reflects the mood of their generation and the challenges faced in finding a job.

Mr Zhang Tao, a telecommunications engineering graduate from Chongqing College of Mobile Communications, told CNA: “This cohort of graduates is very large, and it’s a bit difficult to find employment at the moment.”

“The most popular buzzword is ‘involution’. Because many people around you are definitely competing intensely, which may bring a sense of unnecessary anxiety. So perhaps these photos are one way to let go and relax,” said Mr Yang Zhihao, an applied physics graduate from South China University of Technology.