User:SalesmanW/Migrant Labor Force in China

During 1966 to 1976, Mao Zedong, who was the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, initiated cultural revolution in order to ensure Communism would stay in power. This was done by trying to rid China of Imperialism and Western ideas. One way they did was through red guards, who would torture anyone that was against this, it included peoples' family, friends, and teachers. The cultural revolution was a disaster, causing China to fall behind for several decades. During this time, people suffered from famine and economic failure. Not until 1976, there was finally some hope in their lives. On September 9th 1976, Mao Zedong passed away as the founder of People's Republic of China, and Deng Xiaoping immediately took over the supreme power of Chinese Communist Party and People's Republic of China. With the guidance of Deng Xiaoping, China reached another level and boosted its economy. On December 18th 1978, Deng Xiaoping and reformists within the Chinese Communist Party launched economic reform, opening the borders of China to foreign investments and investors. Through this Deng Xiaoping created special economic zone, forming cities like Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Xiamen, where foreign investors were able to invest without restrictions or intervention from the Chinese Communist Party. With economic reform, investors became rich in the newly prospering cities. As a result, this encouraged people from all over to move those cities to attempt earning some fortune. These people became known floating population. With increasing population in these cities, there was a great demand for jobs. As a result, salaries became lower since many people were competing for the same job. This cheap large labor force attracted foreign investors and companies such Nike and Ford Motor Company, who invested in Chinese factories to reduce cost and maximize their profits. In addition, many private firms, known as getihu, started to open and utilized these cheap labors. With the introduction of millions of factories in China, there became an increase in greenhouse gas emission, contributing to climate change. Even worse, the appearance of consumerism caused factories in China to produce more products and emit more greenhouse gases that will worsen climate change.

Era of Mao Zedong
During his rule, Mao Zedong banned free movement of the population, especially those from the rural areas, from moving to wherever they wanted. Mao was afraid that the rural population would move to the cities for more opportunities, leaving no one left in the rural areas to cultivate the lands and grow crops that would feed a large population of China. While there is no doubt that more can be earned in the cities, Mao and the Chinese government prohibited this movement. In fact, they even announced a hukou system, which prevented people from moving to other cities and getting the welfare they deserve because according to them it would cause many social problems in the future. However, every event that happened under the Mao era cannot compare with the culture revolution. This event pushed China backward several decades, leading to fear, poverty, and the hunger for the population.

Cultural Revolution
During 1966 to 1976, Mao Zedong began cultural revolution to make sure that he had absolute power to control and manage China. "Gangs of students and red guards attacked people wearing bourgeois clothes on the street, imperialist signs were torn down and intellectuals and party officials were murdered or driven to suicide." In other words, they were trying to tear down everything about imperialism and ideas about democracy only to make sure Mao Zedong would stay in his position of power. In fact, they also destroyed temples and historic sites, most of which were irreparable. The cultural revolution was a catastrophe that put China several decades behind. During this time, "1.5 million people were killed", and the economy was crippled, "ruin[ing] millions of lives and thrust[ing] China into 10 years of turmoil, bloodshed, hunger and stagnation." People became afraid to even go outside, so no one was cultivating the land. As a result, there were no crops to support the large population of China. Thirty million people died of famine. During this time period, the people of China were suffering from famine and violence, yet they were not able to do anything about it.

Era of Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping valued prosperity, and he did not forbid people from moving into the cities to find opportunities. He believed that the cadres and the states should do anything to promote productivity and boost the economy. Xiaoping announced economic reform in 1978. In addition, he provided farmers control of their own products and profit and encouraged every individual in China to make economic decisions for themselves, which supported a huge migration rush in the upcoming future. He even "strengthened China's trade and cultural ties with the West and opened up Chinese enterprise to foreign investment."

Economic Reform
On December 18th 1978, Deng Xiaoping announced economic reform, encouraging foreigners to invest in China. The Chinese Communist Party even opened up special economic zones, in cities like  Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Xiamen, for foreigners to invest without intervention and restrictions from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the state. Shenzhen "exploded from a tiny fishing village into one of the country's wealthiest and most dynamic cities", being one of many cities where economic reform brought change. In addition, the Chinese government even allowed "unemployed people with urban household registrations to start their own private business." To allow some Chinese to get rich first, Deng Xiaoping and the Chinese Communist Party had allowed some Chinese to open private enterprises. The Chinese Communist Party no longer held the market, encouraging the population to take advantage of market opportunities. By allowing some to get rich first, these people would support the economy of China. During the economic reform, there were many opportunities in cities, such as Shenzhen and Xiamen, waiting for people to take them.

Foreign Investment
During the economic reform, "more than 220,000 foreign funded ventures [were] approved." [With] US$300 billion of contracted investment ... and US$95 billion of utilized invest[ment]." In other words, foreigners were trying to explore such a new market, and "China was so committed to foreign trade and foreign direct investment (FDI)." For foreigners and China, economic reform was very beneficial. It allowed foreigners to finally enter China’s market, which had been isolated during the time of Mao Zedong. For foreigners looking to invest, China’s market was a brand-new opportunity, which many companies took. "Volkswagen, IBM, Gillette, Coca Cola, Beatrice Foods and many other MNCs had operations in China." In return, China could boost its economy with the help of foreigners and their investment. Foreigners would come to special economic zones, such as Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Xiamen, and open a factory or private firm. This created jobs and other opportunities for the people of China and encouraged millions to come to these cities.

Private Firms (Getihu)
To boost Chinese economy, the Chinese Communist Party finally allowed Chinese to possess their own business. "The central government's policy towards the private sector ... evolved from prohibition, to toleration, to active encouragement." In fact, the Chinese government not only encouraged people to open their own companies to satisfy customer's needs but also helped people stay on their feet. Everyone in China who had the ability to open a private firm was trying to take advantage of this opportunity, because fixed wages and little welfare provided by the state-owned enterprise were not enough for them. People were trying to open corporations as soon as possible, so they could take advantage of this policy. This led to hundreds, thousands, or maybe millions of new stores and companies in the economic reform era. The "Chinese government show[ed] that the number of private sector employees rose from 4.5 million in 1985 to an estimated 81.3 million in 1999." Getihu, people who opened up private companies during the economic reform created millions of jobs and opportunities. Therefore, this caused millions, maybe billions of people to immigrate to the big cities where there were many private firms.

Education Level
Rural China did not have a good education system. Many villages did not even have a school, as a result those who lived there were unable to get an education. Those that did have schools had a poor-quality education compared to that available in urban areas. This lack of education led to things such as health problems, nutrition problems, poverty, and famine for migrants. This also impacted their job opportunities, limiting them to only being able to do unskilled work, such as cultivating the land, growing the crops, and manufacturing.

Most migrants who moved to cities used to be farmers, which meant they did not have a high level of education. Although migrant workers boosted the Chinese economy, some of them were high school dropouts while others did not even get to high school. Hence, they did not have the ability and skill to do complicated jobs, leading many people from these rural areas to fight for these low skilled jobs.

Location
Many Chinese had to move out and leave their hometowns because they could no longer survive there. With no money, no food, and no clothes, they moved to the cities for more opportunities and better salaries. Additionally, most people moved out from places that had lower GDP per capita, hoping that they would have a better life and better jobs in the other places.

==== The Areas ====

Thoughts of the People
In 1980, there were 765.42 million poverty-stricken Chinese, and a poverty rate of about 97.5%. If the previous seems like a large number, it is hard to imagine the amount of impoverished Chinese if experts were to calculate it during the 1970s or 1960s. The people in rural China had no money, no food, no water, nothing to keep them living. That is why, "millions of farmers [left] the drudgery of the fields for the bright lights of the cities." People in the rural areas moved into the cities for money and jobs. They were no longer able to continue tolerating the poverty and famine, so they chose to fight to get out of poverty themselves without waiting for the government to help them. While many chose to go to the cities, many were forced to move into them because their homes were taken by the government or the state.

Money
Nowadays, "poverty is defined by China as anyone in rural areas earning less than about $2.30 a day." In reality, those living in rural areas may sometimes earn much less than in the 1970s and 1980s. People in these areas are hardly able to survive with this amount of money. With an income of only $2.30 dollars a day, or in some cases less, these people hardly have enough to buy the necessary essentials like food, water, clothes, and shoes. The only way they see it possible to be able to afford these things is if they go to the cities and find a job opportunity that will pay them more than they are able to make in rural areas, and this is why so many people migrate into these new thriving cities. In these new prosperous cities, there was new edifices, infrastructure, great schools, nice gymnasiums, beautiful parks, and many good working opportunities with much better salaries. The cities were so much better compared to their hometowns in rural areas of China, and most migrants loved it. With economic reform and the rise of private enterprise, there were many working opportunities in the cities, and the workers were able to earn a better salary than cultivating the rural lands. Migrant workers saw this as a rare new opportunity that would allow them to be able to get out of poverty if they worked extremely hard. As a result, some of them worked seven days a week and overtime every day, many with the hopes that they would be able to return to their rural hometown as soon as possible after having made enough money.

Job
After the economic reform, many big foreign companies, such as Nike, Adidas, and Ford, were willing to come to Chinese cities to invest, this provided many job opportunities. In fact, with the permission of the Chinese Communist Party and the rise of private enterprise, there were many great job opportunities in the cities. Many stores started to open and fulfill the needs of the people, with this increase in stores and factories, it meant that there were more positions needed to be filled. "Obviously jobs were available in cities and [were] growing quickly." Although there were many new job opportunities in the cities, there were still not enough for every migrant coming to them. The number of migrant workers outweighed the number of jobs, this caused people coming from rural areas to take every job opportunity they received very seriously, or they might miss out on the chance to earn a good living salary compared to the amount of money they would have earned in their hometowns. For many workers who do not get those jobs, they would continue looking for work within that city or make the decision to move to another to find new opportunities since there would be a possibility that there would no longer be any available for them there.

Relocation
Although money and jobs were the major reasons for China’s rural population to move into these new thriving cities, there were still those who refused to move there. However, regardless of their stubbornness or desire to stay in their hometowns, many were forced to move into these cities. The Chinese government and the states took away their homes by force for economic and environmental purposes. This left them with nothing if they now stayed there, and their only option was to move into these cities for opportunity and jobs.

Mongolian
Mongolians who lived in Inner Mongolia were the main victims of the enforced relocation. They were forced to abandon their only known lifestyle and join the Han in the cities for economic and environmental reasons. In fact, "650,000 herders [were] relocated from their lands." In other words, this caused an extra increase of 650,000 migrants to be added into the population of the cities, which is quite promising. With different backgrounds and different traditions, it was very difficult for the new Mongolian migrants to adapt into the culture and lifestyle of these cities, which may create social issues for them and the rest of the population living in these cities.

Tibetan
Tibetans who lived in the highlands of the Qinghai province were another major victim of the relocation. They were also forced to abandon their unique lifestyle and adapt to this new city life. In fact, the government even blocked Tibetans from going back to their homes, because they were planning on building "a nature reserve, known as a sanjiangyuan." As the Mongolians, Tibetans now left with no options could only move into the cities with other migrants, hoping they would find opportunities and jobs to survive in this new unfamiliar environment.

Economic Impact
After seeing these new opportunities and jobs in cities such as Shenzhen and Zhuhai, the Chinese started to migrate into them. "[Many] of these millions of workers [were] internal migrants from the Chinese countryside." People in rural China were poor and trying to take advantage of this chance as an opportunity to make some money and become wealthy. In fact, the population of migrants continues to grow. "There are between 120 million and 200 million migrants in Chinese cities." It is such a huge population as people continue to try to take advantage of these chances to earn some money, so they can live comfortably for the rest of their lives. Similarly, foreign investment and private firms are also trying to exploit this opportunity, they see this as a chance to reduce their cost of production while increasing their profits. They do this by paying those looking for jobs a minimum wage since they know that the job demand is high and there are multiple people competing over the same job opportunity.

Prosperity of the Cities
After economic reform, cities in special economic zones, such as Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Xiamen, were opened to foreign investment and foreigners. In fact, foreigners are able to invest without the restriction or intervention from the Chinese government, which was great for China as it allowed it to boost and support its economy. In order to lure more foreign investment and foreigners, China built a good infrastructure, such as good roads, electricity stations, dams, streetlights, highways, airports, and train stations, in the cities to make sure big foreign companies and foreigners can invest without worrying that poor development might increase cost. China had already made those cities thrive, and with many private firms investing, the cities became more convenient and blooming. In addition, the Chinese government also allowed the introduction of private firms. They encouraged much of the Chinese population to open stores and factories that met the needs of the people, and they did this through providing support for those who wanted to take this opportunity. With foreign investment and the emergence of private firms, cities, such as Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Xiamen, became a prosperous economic center. Within those cities, one was able to see any kind of store or factory, surprisingly even restaurants that offered a diverse selection of food, such as Korean, Mexican, and Italian, were able to be seen everywhere. Compared to what they were in the past, it is difficult to imagine that those now prospering cities were once tiny villages. Having seen the opportunities they brought about for others, everyone wanted to own a place in these thriving cities that developed into great economic centers of China.

The cities of Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Xiamen, having previously been unable to become as prosperous as they are right now, were only able to become that way due to the huge migrant population from all over China, many of whom were forced to move there. Without such a large population, there would not be as big of a free labor force, and as a result might have discouraged foreigners and foreign investors to avoid trying out the opportunities the newly opened Chinese market had for them since there would still be restrictions in this new market that may lead them to see it as a bad investment. However, the reality was that these cities did have many migrant workers who were willing to engage in any type of job available to them having previously come from nothing. Therefore, the situation made the wages lower than the inferior wage in developed countries. In fact, most people coming from rural areas were willing to accept the offered salary because the wage was better than that they could get from cultivating the lands and growing crops. Hence, foreigners and foreign branded companies were willing to set up factories in these cities to utilize such a huge labor force to minimize their costs. With more factories and foreign investment, these cities became extremely prosperous.

==== Top 10 metropolitan areas for migrants in China ====

Boost the Economy
After arriving in the cities, the incomes of those coming from the rural areas "rose immediately by 500 percent." In other words, people from rural China had more money to spend compared to what they previously had. They were able to buy the foods they wanted as well as the clothes they wanted to wear rather than what they could only afford. In fact, they were earning "an extra 8 to 9 dollars a day." This meant that they actually had leftover money they would be able to save and buy something that was more expensive, such as a car or house. As a result, the consumer population of workers boosted the Chinese economy since they would spend money within these cities through many different ways, one example being renting houses within these cities. "For China as a nation, the great migration has been responsible for an estimated 20 percent to 33 percent of its economic growth since reforms began." Not to mention that China had "an additional $1.1 trillion in economic output over a 20-year period." Migrant workers were not only supporting the economy but also consuming goods that eventually stimulated the Chinese economy as a whole.

Spending Money
After coming to these cities, there was no doubt that the people coming from rural areas would have more money to spend, and they would be more willing to spend that money rather than saving it. They were willing to utilize that money to buy clothes, food, occasionally eat in expensive restaurants, and buy luxury goods, because they never had that much money leftover in their life before. In fact, if the states allowed, some of them were even willing to spend their money on education or even on travel. Hence, the consumption of migrant workers stimulated the Chinese economy. "In 2015, the urbanization rate increased by 1.33 percentage points over 2014 and China's GDP grew by 6.9%." The economy of China will only continue growing, since people in the rural areas continue moving into the cities in search of a better life.

Housing
Although migrant workers were earning more in the cities, they were unable to afford owning a home. This led many workers to rent an apartment in the cities, as a result the demand for home rental continued to grow. The workers would have to pay rent with their hard-earned money. However, for the home owners, it was a different story. With the increasing demand for rental housing, the home owners could continue exploiting the workers without having to work hard at all. In fact, they would increase the rent that the workers paid and could hardly afford since many of them had low paying jobs. However, the migrants had no choice but to rent the place, because they needed a place to live in the cities. Hence, the home owners would have more money to consume which would eventually boost the Chinese economy when they spend it.

Social Impact
"Between 1978 and 2012, the population of China's cities grew by half a billion people, swollen by more than 260 million economic migrants moving [into] urban centers to look for new opportunities." In fact, the number continues growing gradually. This caused overpopulation to become a huge problem. For example, if we observe Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, "from 1980 to 2010, the population of Beijing rose from 9 million to 21 million, Shanghai from 11 million to 20 million, and most incredibly Shenzhen, the area surrounding Hong Kong, from 300,000 to 10 million." With a big increase with an already present large population in the cities, the city can expect to encounter social issues, such as transportation problems, welfare problems, and education problems.

Furthermore, the hukou system, "designed to prevent rural migration to the cities", caused serious social issues. For example, the hukou system created inequality issues between the people from rural and those from urban areas, because people from the urban areas enjoyed more welfare, such as better schools, social payment, health insurance, and the permission to buy a house in the cities. However, with the increase in migrants from rural areas looking for a more comfortable life than that available in their hometowns, these opportunities became scarce.

The Hukou System
"The hukou system proved a useful tool of social control, but it was originally designed to prevent rural migration to the cities." In other words, people in rural areas could not enjoy the welfare and benefits of the cities if they did not have an urban hukou. For those with a rural hukou, they were not allowed to own or buy a house in the cities, and the only way this would be possible would be by having an urban hukou. Additionally, those with a rural hukou had unequal access to services, such as social payment, health insurance, and social protection. In fact, people with urban hukou would in some cases even earn higher wages than those with a rural hukou. Furthermore, children of migrant workers were unable to study in the cities as the hukou system would ban them from doing so. Hence, children of migrant workers were forced to remain in rural areas and get an education there that would not be the same quality as that available to those in the urban areas.

Education For Children
For children with an urban hukou, studying in schools with good education quality and software was normal, however, it was a different story for those with a rural hukou. As previously mentioned, children with rural hukou were forbidden from studying in the cities, due to the hukou system. Thus, they would have to go back to the rural area for an education, and they were separated from their parents who were working really hard in the cities. In addition, the hukou system will only increase the gap between the rural and the urban, supporting the inequality of the rural and the urban at the same time. The education system and schools in the rural areas had poor quality compared to their counterparts in the urban areas. Therefore, children who study in the urban areas will outweigh the children who study in the rural, and they will have different performances in the upcoming future. Children who study in the urban areas might become employers or managers, while children who study in rural areas might become migrant workers, just like their parents. If the hukou system continues to exist, this will be the never-ending cycle of the workforce where one person will always be more in power over the other.

Welfare Cannot Be Enjoyed
Under the hukou system, migrant workers were often being treated as inferior people in the cities. They cannot enjoy welfare and benefits provided by the cities, such as social payment, health insurance, and social protection. In other words, it would be troublesome if migrant workers get injured during work, because the government would not subsidize them. They would have to pay the medical fee and medicine fee from their painstaking money. Therefore, migrant workers felt unequal and desperate, which might lead to more social problems in the society. Additionally, they may lose the opportunity they had and may not be able to make this income.

Overpopulation
Although people with rural hukou are being exploited by the hukou system, they continue moving into the cities. There are around 400 million people who moved into the cities in the past twenty years. Not to mention that most of them are moving into particular cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Chongqing, and Chengdu. There is no doubt that overpopulation is a huge and serious problem for those cities, and overpopulation could create unsolvable social issues.

Carbon Dioxide
Migrant workers directly and indirectly emitted carbon dioxide in these cities. To lure migrants and foreign investors into these cities, the government built infrastructures, such as roads, buildings, train stations, highways, and parks. When carrying out the processes of building these infrastructures, a great amount of carbon dioxide was emitted into the atmosphere. In addition, migrant workers needed to take either public or personal transportation to work, which increased the amount of vehicles being used. As a result, this also contributed to the increase of greenhouse gas being emitted during the populations everyday commutes. In fact, the transportation sector in Chinese cities has a huge responsibility for the carbon emission and climate crisis. If China was to change its public transportation into electric and ban internal combustion engine vehicles, it would have a better chance of reaching its goal, being able to reach carbon peak before 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060. Additionally, the manufacturing industry, which is the sector where most of the population work in, is the main reason as to why China is the largest carbon emitter in the world. "[It]’s manufacturing CO2 emissions increased from 1.91 billion tons in 1995 to 6.25 billion tons in 2015, with an average annual growth rate of 6%." This is why if China continues being the biggest manufacturer in the world without changing its greenhouse gas emission, it will be the largest contributor to global warming.

Cement/concrete
With the migration of people moving into these cities, there is an increased demand for new houses and infrastructure required to be met by the government and construction industry. In order to meet this demand, new additions will have to be made to these cities which will cause them to continue to emit a great amount of greenhouse gas, since it contains the use of concrete. "Cement is the source of about 8% of the world's carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions", which means that cement is emitting more carbon dioxide than many countries do. As previously mentioned, since people in rural areas continue having a greater need to come to these cities for jobs and opportunities unavailable to them in their hometowns, China will continue to emit more carbon dioxide gradually with this continuous increase. In order to continue meeting this demand, the government and builders can only continue to build more buildings to satisfy the needs of the people. Leading to the ongoing cycle of carbon dioxide emission, ultimately making climate change increasingly worse.

Transportation
Within the cities, migrant workers can either go to work by taking public transportation or by driving their vehicles. However, either action emits carbon dioxide during their commute, creating a huge issue for China to reduce its carbon emission. "China’s energy consumption from the transport sector reached 474.35 million tons of CO2 emission in 2010", and the experts expect the statistics to double by 2020. As things are going now, there will be no way for China to reduce carbon emission in the transportation sector, unless they are to completely ban internal combustion vehicles and heavily enforce alternative methods of transportation at the same time.

Manufacture
As mentioned before, manufacturing is the major reason why China continues being the world leader of emitting carbon dioxide. "In 2008, the manufacturing sector in China emitted 4,169 MtCO2." Additionally, they emitted more carbon dioxide in 2020 and will probably continue this way in the upcoming future. However, Chinese Communist Party recognizes the problem as a serious environmental and social issue. Since the majority of migrants have little to no education, they are only capable of filling only manufacturing positions and are unable to work in complex and technological jobs. This leaves China with the complex issue of if they were to ban the manufacturing industry to some degree, its unemployment rate would heavily increase within just days. However, if the Chinese government continues to be heavily dependent on the manufacturing industry to some extent, it will continue to worsen the environment not just for themselves but for the world as a whole.