1/3 of new graduates in Shanghai are unemployed, the unemployment rate of young Chinese people still cannot 'cool down'

Youth unemployment is worsening in China, stemming from a weak economic recovery, with export orders and foreign investment falling; consumer demand weakening…

1/3 sinh viên mới tốt nghiệp ở Thượng Hải không có việc làm, tỷ lệ người trẻ Trung Quốc thất nghiệp vẫn chưa thể 'hạ nhiệt'

Young Chinese people attend a job fair for new graduates in Anhui province, September 4. (Source: Reuters)

Don't say they are "unemployed", they are just in a state of "slow employment" - this is the latest message just released by the Shanghai city government in the context of the unemployment rate among Chinese youth still rising and showing no signs of "cooling down".

According to the latest survey by the city government, Shanghai is also a city where more than one-third of new university graduates are unemployed.

The term “slow employment” – reflecting the reluctance of young people to find work after graduating or intending to pursue higher education – has more than doubled in Shanghai over the past eight years, from 15.9% in 2015 to 38% this year.

The figures were released by the Shanghai branch of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) this September after surveying more than 4,000 new university graduates in April – the peak period of the spring recruitment season for new graduates looking to enter the job market.

Of those who chose to “delay employment,” 32% planned to continue their studies and 6% simply postponed employment. Of those surveyed, 57% chose to directly enter the job market in 2023, the NBS said.

The survey also found that the proportion of people who procrastinate without a specific plan has increased fivefold since 2015, from 1.2% to 6%.

As China's economic hub, Shanghai boasts many of the country's top universities, accounting for about 2% of the country's 11.58 million college graduates this year.

Youth unemployment is worsening in China, stemming from a weak economic recovery, with export orders and foreign investment falling; consumer demand weakening…

Prolonged unemployment has left young Chinese frustrated, choosing a "lie-still" lifestyle. (Source: SCMP)

“Slow employment does not mean unemployment, but they are discouraged workers who have decided to stay put,” said Wang Dan, chief economist at Hang Seng Bank (China).

Ms. Wang Dan noted that many families have enough financial resources to support their children, but if young people depend on that support for too long, many consequences will arise.

“Many parents have very limited pensions and resources and cannot afford to leave their children at home for too long,” the expert said.

A notable finding from a survey in Shanghai was that “after three years of Covid-19 control measures, online classes have failed to meet the needs of new graduates who lack internship experience and communication skills.”

After this period, many new terms have appeared such as “flexible work” or “light work” to refer to people who work freelance or on part-time contracts instead of full-time jobs; “full-time parenting” or “paid parenting” - to refer to unemployed adults who live with their parents, are paid by their parents to do housework, take care of grandparents, etc.

Social experts say that such people should not be counted in the number of unemployed youth because most of them are not actively looking for jobs.

In the context of increasingly difficult jobs in the private sector, positions in public agencies are also witnessing extremely fierce competition despite only average annual income.

It is estimated that in the national civil service exam this coming November, nearly 2.6 million people have registered to take the exam for 37,100 job positions - the most in nearly a decade.

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