‘I feel like I’ve been abandoned by the world’: Chinese youth hit by record unemployment

[Hamartia Antidote]

‘I feel like I’ve been abandoned by the world’: Chinese youth hit by record unemployment

Despite Chinese President Xi Jinping’s assurances that the country’s youth are “living an extraordinary time”, recent statistics tell a vastly different story: One in five Chinese under 24 years old are…

www.france24.com

Despite Chinese President Xi Jinping’s assurances that the country’s youth are “living an extraordinary time”, recent statistics tell a vastly different story: One in five Chinese under 24 years old are currently out of work, the highest rate ever recorded. FRANCE 24 reports from Shanghai, where young people say the country’s “zero-Covid” policy and an overall slowing economy are preventing them from seeing the bright future Xi has promised.

Months after his graduation, Zhang Jialiang, who holds a diploma in maritime transport, is still without a job.

“I applied to more than 70 jobs, but I was only called back two or three times for interviews,” he says, recounting how prior to his graduation, he had been promised a job with a large shipping company. But China’s “zero-Covid” policy suddenly put an end to that, at least for now.

“I always thought that my career was set. But this year, because of the pandemic, there are too many uncertainties. Right now, I don't know what the future will bring.”

Zhang isn't alone. Almost 20 percent of China’s under-24-year-olds are now unemployed.

This stands in stark contrast to Xi's recent assurances that the country's youth face "incredibly bright prospects of realising their dreams".

Since 2021, China has also seen a youth movement that rejects societal pressure to dedicate their lives to productivity and results. The protest movement is known as “tang ping”, or “lying flat”, and has gone viral.

“It's been four months that I've been lying flat, and you? How long have you been unemployed?” one Chinese youth writes on social media, while another states: “I feel like I've been abandoned by the world, so I'm lying flat every day.”

 

[Beast]

LOL.. You know why Western world cannot meet productivity of Chinese and many western youth resort to drugs and party, wasting their lies. Becos they know Government will feed them even they dont work. Why need to work so hard?

And you expect countries like this will have a prospect and future? That is why western countries are declining and standard of living are eroding everyday.

 

[beijingwalker]

Time for some facts respite from western anti China propaganda pieces

 

[Mista]

Maybe Singapore should allow more of their graduates to work here. Labor market here is extremely tight now as there are more than two job vacancies per unemployed person. And we have similar culture, it's easier to integrate.

Summary Table: Job Vacancy

Manpower Research & Statistics Department

stats.mom.gov.sg

SINGAPORE’S unemployment rates fell across the board in August, but the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) warned of risks of an economic slowdown that could dampen the labour market.

Overall unemployment rate slid to 1.9 per cent in August; resident unemployment, to 2.7 per cent and citizen unemployment rate, to 2.8 per cent, according to MOM’s monthly unemployment situation report on Friday (Oct 7). All three rates were 0.2 percentage point lower than their levels in July.

The ministry noted that 64,800 residents were unemployed in August, among whom 57,600 were citizens.

This is the lowest level the unemployment rates have fallen to since March 2016. Unemployment figures used to be released on a quarterly basis until mid-2020, when the ministry said it wanted to track the situation more closely during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Nonetheless, MOM warned of weaknesses ahead as economic conditions appear to worsen, striking a markedly different tone from the month before when it noted the ramp-up in recruitment activity owing to the rebound in travel.

“While unemployment rates are currently lower than pre-pandemic levels, the increased risk of a slowdown amidst contraction of manufacturing activity, soaring inflation and interest rate hikes could dampen labour market activity,” the ministry said.

Shortly before the pandemic hit, the average unemployment rates in 2018 and 2019 were 2.2 per cent at the overall, 3 per cent for residents and 3.2 per cent for citizens, MOM noted.

Singapore’s factory output expanded just 0.5 per cent in August, while the Purchasing Manager’s Index in September contracted for the first time in two years.

https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapores-august-jobless-rates-fall-to-6-year-low-but-mom-warns-of-weaknesses

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

We are in 2022 not 2021. Why are you always thinking in the past instead of the present?

 

[beijingwalker]

It's 2022 not 2021

Do you have the latest chart of 2022? this is the latest.

 

[Dungeness]

When your compititors are desperately scavenging any negativities about you, or frantically praying for your bad luck, you might be doing just fine.

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Do you have the latest chart of 2022? this is the latest.

Maybe this is related to all the overseas students coming back and taking jobs in China after graduation instead of working overseas. You mentioned that the percentage returning and taking jobs has jumped to an incredibly high percentage recently. What was it...95%?

 

[Abid123]

At least youth in China dont have to worry about having their brains blown out at school While this is not the case in you know which country

 

[Dungeness]

I think you are too obsessed with China.

Considering the average retirement age and life expectancy in the US, there are only 9 years in between, even shorter for male. So have some fun rather than nitpicking China day in and day out.