Rural Labor Transfer Research Articles

Does Rural Labor Transfer Impact Chinese Agricultural Carbon Emission Efficiency? A Substitution Perspective of Agricultural Machinery

In this paper, referring to Kaya’s method, the ratio of gross agricultural production (GAP) and agricultural carbon emission is defined as agricultural carbon emission efficiency (ACEE). Considering rural labor transfer (RLT) increases the agricultural machinery intensity (AMI), the two are substitutes for each other and may interact with agricultural carbon emission efficiency (ACEE). We constructed a Simultaneous Equations Model (SEM) of ACEE, RLT and AMI and analyzed the interaction mechanism of these three variables using the Three-Stage Least Squares (3SLS). The following conclusions are drawn. First, RLT and AMI significantly promote the improvement of ACEE, while the improvement of ACEE and AMI further promotes RLT. Secondly, the causal relationship and influence mechanism of ACEE, RLT and AMI are interactive and multi-directional. For example, an increase in AMI promotes ACEE, but an increase in ACEE inhibits an increase in AMI. Finally, China has significant regional heterogeneity, and different regions have different interaction mechanisms. Local governments should consider the local economic base and technological level when implementing policies. This paper extends the analytical framework of ACEE, RLT, and AMI and provides a reference for governments to make policies.

The influence of robot applications on rural labor transfer

Employment is a pivotal driver for ensuring and enhancing people’s livelihoods, with stable employment forming the bedrock for achieving high-quality economic development. In this study, CMDS data from 2014–2018, IFR data, and micro-data from China’s Second National Economic Census were utilized to analyze the impact of robot applications on rural labor migration in China, exploring both theoretical and empirical dimensions, particularly the crowding-out effect. The research findings suggest that robot applications influence labor demand through expansion and substitution effects. The results show robot applications significantly increased the probability of rural labor considering re-migration, with a 1% increase in urban robot density resulting in a 0.249% increase in the likelihood of rural labor re-migration. In addition, robot applications were found to reduce the migration rate of urban labor and increase the probability of rural laborers returning to the agricultural sector. Based on mechanism analyses, robot applications were found to have pronounced passive effects in accelerating rural labor migration, particularly among groups with lower skill levels, individuals aged over 44, those in low-skilled occupations, those possessing strong mobility, and those residing in economically developed areas. The conclusions of this study provide new insights for stabilizing employment and optimizing rural labor migration in the context of artificial intelligence development.

Do Factor Misallocations Affect Food Security? Evidence from China

The reasonable allocation of grain production factors is of vital importance to food security and agricultural development. To assess the impact of agricultural factor misallocation on food security, this paper, based on the panel data from China spanning from 2005 to 2019, conducted a comprehensive evaluation of agricultural factor misallocation and food security coefficients across 31 provinces in China, using a spatial Durbin model to examine the effects of factor misallocations on food security. The findings are as follows: (1) Production factor misallocation has significant negative impacts on food security, among them, capital misallocation and labor misallocation inhibiting food security in the local and neighboring areas, and land misallocation has a significant negative impact on food security in local areas, while its spatial spillover effect is no longer significant. (2) Mechanism analysis shows that capital misallocation and labor misallocation hinder the development of transportation infrastructure and the transfer of rural labor, thereby reducing food security. Land misallocation has accelerated the construction of transportation infrastructure, promoted the migration of rural labor, and helped ensure food security. (3) The regional heterogeneity test reveals that capital misallocation and labor misallocation hinder food security in major grain-producing areas and both sides of the Hu Huanyong Line (Hu Line). Meanwhile, land misallocation hinders food security development in various grain-producing areas, as well as the southeast of the Hu Line. Based on the above conclusions, this paper proposes suggestions to improve the efficiency of land and labor resource allocation, accelerate the construction of transportation infrastructure, and encourage the transfer speed of surplus agricultural labor.

Research on Rural Labor Transfer: Data Analysis from Northeast China

Based on a comprehensive big data analysis of the local and migrant workers in the three northeastern provinces, we have obtained insights into the scale distribution, migration flow, employment situation, and challenges faced by this workforce. This analysis aims to inform the top-level design and create a conducive environment for the development of rural electricity, thereby promoting the rationalization of rural labor transfer and sustainable development in the region. The data reveals a diverse pattern in the distribution of migrant workers, with some provinces experiencing a higher influx of migrant labor than others.

Research on the Development Status of Rural Labor Transfer and Employment in the Main Towns of Jiuzhaigou County

Research on the Development Status of Rural Labor Transfer and Employment in the Main Towns of Jiuzhaigou County

The Spatiotemporal Coupling and Coordination of Rural Labor Transfer and Agricultural Ecological Environment of Counties in Anhui

From the perspective of spatiotemporal evolution, this article constructs an evaluation system for the coupling coordination between labor transfer and agricultural ecological environment. The coupling coordination model is used to explore the spatiotemporal coupling coordination between rural labor transfer and agricultural ecological environment in Anhui from 2015 to 2017. The results showed that the ecological environment level in Anhui is gradually increasing and showing a trend of shifting towards southern county towns; The spatial distribution of labor force transfer shows a stable state, with each urban area as the main agglomeration area, and forming agglomeration areas in surrounding counties; From 2015 to 2017, the annual average coupling degree was close to 0.9, indicating good coordination. However, the annual average coupling coordination was on the rise, but it has been in a moderate imbalance.

Review of Rice–Fish–Duck Symbiosis System in China—One of the Globally Important Ingenious Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS)

The Chinese rice–fish–duck symbiosis system is one of the globally important agricultural heritage systems, with a history of nearly a thousand years. It embodies the wisdom of the Chinese ancestors and has huge comprehensive value, which has extremely important references for the sustainable development of agriculture. The technological core for the rice–fish–duck symbiosis system lies in the selection of rice, fish, and duck varieties and the coupling of agricultural operation time. In the process of modern agriculture, many varieties with high comprehensive benefits have also been applied to the rice–fish–duck system, and the rice–fish–duck model has been further developed. What is worrying is that the transfer of rural labor, the promotion of modern agricultural technology, the low degree of marketization and industrialization, the weakening of cultural awareness, and the change in climate have posed huge threats and challenges to the traditional Chinese rice–fish–duck system. The protection and development of the system are urgently needed. Therefore, we recommend delimiting active protection areas, establishing scientific research bases, improving relevant systems, developing rural tourism markets, and innovating farming technology, which also provide guidance for protecting and developing other agricultural cultural heritages.

An Empirical Analysis of Rural Labor Transfer and Household Income Growth in China

For developing countries, rural labor transfer from agriculture to non-agricultural sectors plays a key role in increasing rural household income, improving agricultural productivity, and solving problems of the lack of non-agricultural labor force. As a developing country, although China's total GDP ranks second in the world, its unbalanced development of the regional economy has not be radically solved in the long-term. Therefore, rural labor transfer is also the focus of the Chinese government.Combined with the process of China's rural labor transfer in the last 40 years of reform and opening up, this paper explores the impact of labor transfer on the income growth of rural households, in hope of finding a way for developing countries to learn from.

Spatial–Temporal Dynamic Evolution and Influencing Factors of Green Efficiency of Agricultural Water Use in the Yellow River Basin, China

The progression of agricultural production, ever-increasing industrialization, population boom, and more water-concentrated lifestyles has placed a severe burden on Yellow River Basin’s existing water resources, particularly in the current century. In the context of resource and environmental constraints, improving the green efficiency of agricultural water use (AWGE) is an important measure for alleviating the shortage of water resources as well as meeting the intrinsic requirement to promote the green transformation and upgrading of agriculture. This study used the Super Slack-Based Measure (Super-SBM) to measure the AWGE of 87 regions in the Yellow River Basin from 2000 to 2019. Based on spatial and temporal perspectives, it applied Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis (ESDA) to explore the dynamic evolution and regional differences in AWGE. Then, this study used a spatial econometric model to analyze the main factors that influence AWGE in the Yellow River Basin. The results show that, firstly, the AWGE of the Yellow River Basin shows a steady upward trend from 2000 to 2019, but the differences among regions were obvious. Secondly, the AWGE showed an obvious spatial autocorrelation in the Yellow River Basin and showed significant high–high and low–low agglomeration characteristics. Thirdly, rural per capita disposable income and effective irrigation have a positive influence on AWGE, while rural labor transfer, the input intensity of agricultural machinery and water structure have a negative influence. The spatial econometric model regression results show that the influence factors of AWGE in the Yellow River Basin showed significant spatial spillover effects and spatial heterogeneity in their effect. Finally, when improving AWGE in the Yellow River Basin, plans should be formulated according to local conditions. The results of this study can provide new ideas on the study of AWGE in the Yellow River Basin and provide references for the formulation of regional agricultural water resource utilization policies as well.

The Impact of Rural Labor Transfer Status Differences on Household Land Management Decisions

In the context of large-scale population mobility, this study investigated the effect of income substitution on land management decisions of peasant families. The results showed that: (1) Compared with the employees without fixed employers, the employment status of employees with fixed employers, self-employed workers and employers all increased the possibility of families choosing more socialized management modes such as farming generation and land transfer; (2) Employment identity difference plays a role in household land management decisions through income substitution effect.

Does off-farm employment contribute to chemical fertilizer reduction? New evidence from the main rice-producing area in Jilin Province, China.

Frequent transfer of rural labor to cities in developing countries significantly impacts agricultural production. However, whether off-farm employment can promote chemical fertilizer (CF) reduction is still controversial. This study incorporates business scale (BS) and fragmentation degree of arable land (FDAL) into the theoretical analysis framework, shedding light on regulating effects of arable land resource endowment in the process of off-farm employment which influences CF application under different BS and FDAL scenarios. It also empirically tests the theoretical framework by employing the survey data of 318 rice farmers in Jilin Province. The results indicate that: (1) off-farm employment, in general, promotes the adoption behavior of machinery by farmers, and mechanical tillage can significantly reduce the intensity of CF application. (2) If farmers have large BS and non-dispersed farmland parcels, contiguous cultivation will meet the scale threshold for mechanical farming and obtain economies of scale to reduce the intensity of CF application. (3) If farmers have small BS and dispersed farmland parcels, the scale threshold of mechanical farming cannot be met. In order to stabilize agricultural production, farmers will increase the intensity of CF application. According to the empirical results, we put forward some suggestions.

Employment Transfer of Rural Female Labor and Family Welfare Effect in Mountainous Areas: An Empirical Analysis Based on Panel Data

Improving the understanding of rural female labor employment transfer and its impact on family welfare is of great significance to the improvement of rural family welfare and the rational transfer of labor forces. However, there are few studies on the effect of rural female transfer and there is a lack of comprehensive quantitative measurement and mechanism analysis of influences of female employment transfer on themselves and their families. Based on the peasant household survey in the mountainous rural areas of Sichuan Province, China, in 2013, 2016, and 2019, results were organized as panel data and divided the employment features into three aspects: employment industry, employment locations and whether the migrant was working or not. The family welfare effects (impact on children and impact on the elderly) of rural female labor transfer for employment were investigated by using the fixed effect and random effect regression models. Some major conclusions could be drawn: (1) age, education degree, employment industry and locations of rural females all had a significant impact on their children’s education degree; (2) age, urbanization rate and industry of rural females had a significant impact on their number of children; (3) age, education degree of females, employment location and urbanization rate had a significant positive influence on the number of elderly in the family: only the age of rural females had a significant negative influence on the health condition of the elderly. This study can enhance our understanding of the relationship between rural women’s employment and family welfare effects, the results can provide a reference for rural women’s rational employment mobility and maximizing of family welfare.

Exploring the impact of rural labor transfer on the production and ecological sustainability of crop planting structure in China.

With the improvement of industrialization, numerous rural laborers migrate to urban areas in search of off-farm jobs. Farmers change agricultural production decisions to adapt to the change of labor force, which will inevitably affect the crop planting structure. However, few studies have explored the sustainability of crop planting structure. Based on the calculation of the multiple cropping index (MCI), grain crops planting rate (GCR), economic crops planting rate (ECR), and ecological sustainability index (ESI) of crop planting structure, this study analyzes the impact of labor transfer rate (LTR) and labor cost (LC) on the sustainability of crop planting structure using a geographically and temporally weighted regression (GTWR) model. The results show that the scale of rural labor transfer and labor cost in China remains on the rise, but the growth rate has slowed down. The total carbon absorption of crops in China shows a U-shape trend, and the rice and maize have the largest carbon absorption. The impact of LTR on MCI is mainly positive, especially in the North China Plain in the early stage and some provinces in the Southwest China in the later stage. The impact of LTR on ECR and ESI is negative in most provinces. And the negative influence of LC on MCI is increasing, showing the spatial distribution characteristics of large influence in the southeast and small influence in the northwest. The impact of LC on ESI shows a negative effect in most provinces in the early stage, and the negative effect is more concentrated in some provinces in the southwest in the later stage.

Rural migration, governance, and public health nexus: Implications for economic development.

With the deepening of rural aging and the increasing role of human capital in the non-agricultural employment labor market, this paper uses the data of China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), ordinary least squares (OLS) and instrumental variable method (IV) to try to examine the impact of rural migrant workers' education on their parents' health. Since a rural family may include more than one child, a sample of migrant workers with a high education level is used in the benchmark regression, and a sample of migrant workers with a low education level is used to test the robustness of the relationship. The results showed that the education of migrant workers had a significant positive impact on parents' health. The sample with the least education was used for the robustness, and the results did not change. The IV-probit method is used to address potential endogeneity, and the results remain stable. Heterogeneity analysis shows that there are significant differences in the impact of migrant workers' education on the health of parents from different groups. This positive effect has a greater impact on the health of parents who are older, less educated, and do not live with their children. Mediation analysis shows that children's economic ability, captured by income and work type, and their parents' health behavior, captured by sleep, alcohol consumption, and physical examinations, mediate this relationship. Thus, migrant workers' education affects their parents' health mainly through relaxing budget constraints and improving their parents' health production efficiency. In addition, this paper also found that education of migrant workers may significantly increase parental depression. Based on the above analysis, this paper argues that increasing investment in rural education is conducive to improving the health of migrant farmers' parents, thereby promoting the transfer of rural labor to non-agricultural industries and cities, curbing the rapid rise in labor costs, and promoting the healthy development of the economy.

Analysis of the Influences of Ecological Compensation Projects on Transfer Employment of Rural Labor from the Perspective of Capability

As an environmental policy that directly brings economic benefits to farmers, ecological compensation should achieve the dual goals of ecological environmental protection and rural poverty reduction. With the implementation of various ecological compensation projects, a large number of studies began to focus on the impact of ecological compensation projects on rural labor transfer employment. However, most of the existing studies focus on a specific project and fail to consider a comparative analysis of different types of projects. Therefore, this study used the survey data of 1279 rural laborers in the Yanqing District of Beijing to analyze the impact of different types of ecological compensation projects on the transfer employment of rural labor from the perspective of self-development capacity. The results show that post-based ecological compensation projects provide a low quality of posts and weaken the initiative of participants to further expand their employment channels. Land-based projects downsize agricultural production and reduce the agricultural production activities of participants, without significantly increasing their likelihood of transfer employment. In the long run, the current implementation of ecological compensation projects may cause problems regarding labor surpluses and land restoration. This study has certain practical application value and practical guiding significance for further improving the design of ecological compensation mechanisms.

How Do Non-Agricultural Employment and Regional Selection Affect Farmers' Domestic Sewage Discharge Behavior? Empirical Evidence from Rural China.

In many countries, along with rising rural labor transfer, the problem of rural domestic sewage discharge is becoming increasingly serious due to labor shortages in the villages. It is urgent to solve the environment pollution and health problems of residents which is caused by the massive discharge of domestic sewage in rural areas. Based on the survey data collected from Nanjing Agricultural University in 2020, this paper employs the ordered probit model and the CMP method, to empirically test the impact of non-agricultural employment and regional choice on farmers’ domestic sewage discharge behavior and the moderating effect of environmental cognition and the social network. The results show that: (1) There is a significantly positive correlation between non-agricultural employment and farmers’ sewage treatment behavior. (2) Environmental cognition significantly improves the participation of urban non-agricultural employment farmers in sewage treatment, and the social network has a significant role in promoting the adoption of sewage treatment behavior of local non-agricultural employment farmers. (3) Further heterogeneity analysis results show that the inhibitory effect of urban non-agricultural employment on random sewage discharge is more pronounced than that of local non-agricultural employment. Therefore, in order to effectively solve the problem of rural domestic sewage discharge, it is necessary to actively guide the sewage discharge behavior of non-agricultural employment households, strengthen the social network interaction within the village, and increase the publicity for sewage discharge knowledge.

Spatial Spillover Effect of Rural Labor Transfer on the Eco-Efficiency of Cultivated Land Use: Evidence from China.

In this study, the influence of rural labor transfer and its spatial spillover effect on the eco-efficiency of cultivated land use (ECLU) in different regions were investigated using the undesirable super-efficiency epsilon based measure (EBM) and spatial Durbin models and data of 31 Chinese provinces for the period 1990–2018. The results show that: (1) China’s rural labor transfer rate increased; (2) in the east region, the ECLU has exceeded the national average level since 2001. In the west and northeast regions, the ECLU was higher, whereas it remained below the national average level in Central China; (3) in the whole country, west, and northeast regions, the effect of rural labor transfer on the ECLU was first negative and then positive, whereas it was insignificant in East and Central China. In Central, West, and Northeast China, the effect of the labor transfer on the ECLU had significant spatial spillover effects; (4) a significant U-shaped trend was observed between the local labor transfer and ECLU in the whole country, west, and northeast regions. A positive linear correlation was determined for Central China; labor transfer in other regions had significant indirect effects on the ECLU in Central and Northeastern China. In conclusion, China’s rural labor transfer had a significant spatial spillover effect on the ECLU, and differences were observed between East, Central, West, and Northeast China.

Research on Droplets Deposition Characteristics of Anti-Drift Spray Device with Multi-Airflow Synergy Based on CFD Simulation

With the increase in orchard areas and the transfer of rural labor, various air-assisted sprayers have been widely used in China. However, the problem of off-target drift still exists, which has caused pesticide waste and environmental pollution. In order to improve the droplet deposition in the canopy of fruit trees, a V-shaped anti-drift spray device with multi-airflow synergy was designed in this paper. A droplet spatial motion model was constructed, and the anti-drift mechanism of multi-airflow synergy was clarified based on particle dynamics analysis. The influences of spray pressure and V-shaped wind speed on droplet movement were investigated by Matlab, and the experimental results showed that the machine’s anti-drift effect was better when the V-shaped wind speed ranged from 15 m/s to 25 m/s. According to modern orchards with low root stock in a high-density planting, a simulation model of the flow field between the spray device and the fruit trees canopy was established by the method of computational fluid mechanics (CFD). By considering crosswind speed, V-shaped wind speed, and spray pressure, three-level simulation experiments of droplet deposition were designed for each factor using a partial multivariate orthogonal regression method. The influence of V-shaped wind speed on the droplets’ spatial distribution was analyzed, and the prediction model of the drift distance of the droplets’ deposition center was established. The simulation results showed that the three factors had a significant influence on the droplets’ deposition characteristics, and the degree from big to small was V-shaped wind speed, crosswind speed, and spray pressure. The fitting degree of the prediction model was high, and the correlation coefficient was 0.998. The anti-drift experiments of the machine were carried out, and the results showed that when the crosswind speed, the spray pressure, and V-shaped wind speed were 2.2 m/s, 0.52 MPa, and 20.8 m/s, respectively, the droplet drift rate was 29.2% lower than that of single-airflow. The drift distance of the droplets deposition center was 5.0 cm, which was consistent with the prediction model. The research can provide a basis for the design and parameters optimization of the similar sprayers used in modern orchards with low root stock in a high-density planting.

Correlation Analysis of Surplus Labor Transfer and Economic Growth Based on STR Model

For a long time, the research on the relationship between economic growth and the transfer of surplus labor has been the focus and hot issue of all kinds of people. As a model that can describe the nonlinear transformation between different states of variables in detail, the STR model is the Frontier and hot topic of nonlinear time series analysis. In recent years, it has been successfully applied in the fields of economy, finance, capital market, macro policy simulation, and so on. The STR model can well describe the nonlinear and nonequivalent linkage effect between economic growth and surplus labor and has significance in both practice and theory. By constructing an STR model of four variables, including the added value of rural labor transfer and the real added value of each industry, this paper conducts an empirical analysis on the extremely dynamic interaction between the transfer of rural surplus labor and various industries in China. There is an interactive effect of economic growth. The results of the study show that the relationship between human capital and economic growth in China presents a nonlinear characteristic of periodic changes, and frequently switches between linear and nonlinear relationships.

Can Land Circulation Improve Farmers’ Income? A Survey of Five China' s Western Provinces

This article Based on the field survey of 15000 farmers in Gansu, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi and Qinghai provinces, we used mediator model,analyzed the impact of farmers' livelihood strategies on land circulation and income growth. The research results showed that the farmers’ dependence on land gradually weakened, the willingness of farmland transfer decline, the willingness of farmland transfer to rise; Farmer’s livelihood strategy directly affected income growth, while indirectly income growth by land circulation. Therefore, further promotion on agricultural science and technology achievements transformation and talent support for rural development should be strengthened, the agricultural support system which increases farmers' income should be promoted, farmers' agricultural labor remuneration and scale economic benefit should be encouraged by new styles of agricultural businesses. We should continue to strengthen the progress of the land property rights system, promote the transfer of rural surplus labor through skills training, employment and encourage startups, so that farmers will be both participants and beneficiaries from the farmland transfer.