Unemployed Chinese workers: the survivors, the worried young and the discouraged old

Abstract

The forces of globalization and the wave of economic reform in the People's Republic of China have led to government policies to downsize state-owned enterprises and support a competitive labour market. Chinese workers who have been laid off ( xiagang ) are leaving the 'iron rice-bowl' security of the socialist state. Unemployment produces personal challenges for laid-off workers and human resource policy challenges for the government. For workers, xiagang and unemployment status mean they must cope with the unfamiliar challenges of job search and the threat of economic hardship. But how unemployment influences workers' lives is strikingly diverse in its impacts. Distinctly different patterns emerge for workers depending on: 1) their position in the social structure and stage of life, 2) their available skills and coping resources, and 3) their experience of economic and psychological distress. The present study reports survey responses of a sample of 2,412 laid-off Chinese workers in seven cities in China and identifies three distinct sub-groups of unemployed workers: 1) 'Survivors': more confident and better educated workers, 2) 'The Worried Young': distressed younger workers with few coping resources, and 3) 'The Discouraged Old': older workers with less education looking towards retirement. Each of these groups of workers views their circumstances and life prospects in quite different ways. Our results are examined in the context of the literature on social change and the life course. Our findings also suggest different human resource policies for each of these groups of workers.