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Letter from the Editors
Thanks for being a China Labour Bulletin subscriber! Recently, CLB has been focusing on the changes in China’s manufacturing industry and gig economy, and these two topics are related from a labour pool perspective.
Several years ago, just as China’s manufacturing industry began to shrink, platform companies were growing rapidly and needed a strong labour force to build demand. During the pandemic, food delivery and courier services became essential to customers and provided flexible labour for those newly seeking work. Today, some sectors of the platform economy are becoming saturated with workers while the manufacturing sector is seeing mass layoffs and closures. CLB will be keeping an eye on these and other (un)employment trends.
Our newsletter will be a place where we share what trends we’re seeing and how they affect China’s workers. If you like our content, please share this email with a friend or colleague!
Sincerely,
CLB Editors
What We’re Focusing On
Gender equality. We bring a gender dimension to our recent work on China’s gig economy by understanding how women workers - who make up as much as 20 percent of the labour force in key gig industries - face labour challenges as a result of gender discrimination from society, colleagues and algorithms. This CLB commentary is based on academic research, industry reports, and news articles on the topic. Read our take: Women workers in China’s gig economy face discrimination, lower pay, unsafe conditions.
Supply chains in China. Our researchers analysed the recent trends in China’s manufacturing sector and produced a brief report on how workers are affected by layoffs, relocations, and shutdowns, as well as how CLB envisions that local governments, China’s official trade union, and businesses have aligned interests with workers at a time when international brands are changing their supply chain patterns. Read our analysis: Surge of manufacturing protests in China deserves international attention.
Enough with overwork. An expletive-laced retort by a tech worker to his overbearing manager went viral on the eve of April’s Qingming Festival, and although its veracity cannot be confirmed, the overwhelming public sentiment is that workers are done with overtime and lack of boundaries in the workplace. But do they have enough bargaining power to create change? Read our story, with analysis and context: White-collar workers cheer for underdog standing up to manager against overtime on public holiday.