22-year-old superstar Jackson Yee of TFBoys was recruited by China’s National Theatre, a public institution. The public raised suspicions and voiced anger about the privilege that celebrities have in the civil servant recruitment process. This general sense of unfairness is heightened by the tough job market and the public yearning for stable positions at public institutions funded by the government.
1. Signs of tough job market: Unemployment rate of young people soars in 2022. Source: National Bureau of Statistics (2022)
2. So-called “iron rice bowl” government jobs are increasingly popular career paths. Source: National Civil Service Administration (2022)
3. The ratio of applicants to jobs for the 2022 civil service exam is 68:1. Source: National Civil Service Administration (2022)