The youth unemployment issue in mainland China is severe, especially with recent university graduates facing difficulties in job placement and workplace competition. The Chinese Communist Party has introduced a new strategy – recruiting university graduates into the domestic service industry. This move has sparked widespread discussions among Chinese internet users, with many sarcastically referring to it as a new “track” for college students and lamenting the “rapid devaluation of diplomas.” Analysts believe that behind this move, the CCP is attempting to shift the blame for unemployment onto university students.
The Ministry of Education in China predicts that by 2025, the number of university graduates will reach 12.22 million, setting a new historical record. In a situation of high unemployment rates, many mainland Chinese university students find themselves in a predicament of “graduating into unemployment.”
Recently, five departments including the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Education issued a joint statement requesting provinces to establish specialized domestic service departments and to actively recruit university graduates into the domestic service industry. Chinese internet users have been quick to mock this initiative.
A Shanghai blogger known as “Lao Kang” posted a short video mockingly stating, “This is hilarious, 12.22 million graduates next year…rushing into the domestic service industry.”
He criticized the move, mentioning that after studying for a total of 19 years, including three years of kindergarten, university students have acquired knowledge and language skills, yet the authorities now want them to enter the domestic service industry to “compete for the domestic market with aunties and uncles.” He humorously questioned the irony of college students being encouraged to become male nannies and female cleaners, highlighting the unusual nature of the situation.
The video received over 17,000 likes and more than 3,700 comments, with the majority expressing disagreement with the new policy.
A netizen from Fujian province sarcastically commented, “Next step could be encouraging university students to go to the countryside and become farmers.”
Another netizen from Yunnan jokingly remarked, “After working hard to put her daughter through university, a cleaning lady finds herself working alongside her daughter.”
A netizen from Shanghai expressed concern about the return on educational investment for his daughter, questioning what she could do after spending over 300,000 RMB on supplementary classes even before entering high school.
A netizen from Liaoning directly pointed out that the new policy is a ploy to grab tuition fees, suggesting that what the authorities want is not the students themselves but the money generated from their educational expenses.
According to the official documents released, authorities have mandated that each province establish at least one high-level modern domestic service professional group at the vocational education level, with the national goal of training 300,000 domestic service personnel, 30,000 domestic service trainers, and 10,000 domestic service managers annually.
Many microblog users have also criticized the new policy. One commenter expressed that the most demanding aspect of domestic work is cleaning, colloquially known as “hygiene work,” which is essentially laborious and sometimes requires catering to the whims of clients. In Guangzhou, for instance, working 28 hours a day without breaks may only fetch around 7,000 RMB, which is not even as lucrative as working with livestock.
A netizen from Guangdong stated that the new policy indirectly acknowledges the employment issue.
According to a report from Voice of America, a 25-year-old post-00s newcomer to the workforce named Ray mentioned that post-epidemic, the Chinese job market indeed offers fewer opportunities and is very competitive. However, unless facing financial difficulties, graduates from prestigious universities may have little interest in entering the domestic service field, particularly in low-end cleaning roles.
Ray revealed that some of his university classmates who graduated two years ago have either chosen to spend one or two years preparing for postgraduate exams or have aimed for civil service positions, with few opting for low-end labor jobs.
He admitted that these jobs are not prestigious and symbolize a “devaluation of education,” making individuals more susceptible to discrimination from their peers, as educational backgrounds are socially stratified in China. Graduates from top-tier universities like Tsinghua and Peking University tend to look down on those from lower-ranked institutions, exacerbating the divisiveness in society. Additionally, having studied in the UK, he highlighted the biases among international returnees, with those who studied in the United States looking down on British-educated individuals like himself.
In terms of job hunting experience, Ray mentioned sending out about 150 resumes, which, compared to friends who send out 200 to 400 applications, was relatively few. Despite this, outcomes from job interviews have been uncertain, with some interviews extending to three rounds and still resulting in no offers. He exclaimed that the job market is overly competitive.
Giving an example of the hiring process at the internet giant ByteDance, Ray mentioned a friend who had to go through six interview rounds before being rejected. He expressed his confusion regarding the extensive interview processes, questioning whether companies were seeking regular employees or CEOs, pointing out the excessive competition and resource wastage in the process, which is detrimental to society.
Li Qiang, the founder and executive director of “China Labor Watch” based in New York, believes that with the economic downturn in China, the pressures on salaried middle-class families have increased, leading to a downgrade in consumption. He expresses concerns about a potential shrinkage in the domestic service market and a decline in demand in the future. He questions the authorities’ decision to introduce measures to recruit university students into the domestic service market at this time, suggesting that it aims to shift the responsibility for the high unemployment rate onto young people aged 16-24.
Li emphasized that the domestic cleaning industry relies on the middle class for employment, but this group is continuously being overworked and faces job insecurity. He highlighted the unpredictability of their jobs and doubted the sustainability of the domestic service market. By promoting this policy, the Chinese government is attempting to blame the responsibility on university students, suggesting that there are plenty of employment opportunities available, but the students choose not to pursue them.