InfoAnda - Jobless migrants flood back to China's villages

Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case
Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They

Taiwan denies boycotting Australian film festival
Thursday, August 6, 2009

AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e

Merkel's support dips, regional ally resigns International
Thursday, September 3, 2009

By Sarah Marsh and Noah Barkin

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German

Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who

Asian markets mixed after Wall Street rally
Wednesday, March 18, 2009

By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an

US-TECH Summary | 23 October 2009
Kidnapped French journalists in Afghanistan alive | | 2 January 2010
Indonesia's Democratic Party elects new head | 24 May 2010

G8 seeks Sahel anti-terrorism progress at Mali meet | | 14 October 2010

">Forum Views () ">Forum Replies ()

Read more with google mobile : Jobless migrants flood back to China's villages

Navigation Primary Navigation Home Singapore Asia Pacific World Business Entertainment Sports Technology Top Stories Most Popular Secondary Navigation Australia China India Indonesia Japan Malaysia Philippines Thailand Vietnam Search Search: Jobless migrants flood back to China's villages By ANITA CHANG,Associated Press Writer AP - Tuesday, January 20 BEIYA VILLAGE, China - For Chen Xiaohong, the global economic crisis started with unsold portable DVD players. "The factory just couldn't move the merchandise. It sat there for three months. They said it was because of the financial crisis," said Chen, a slight 37-year-old in a navy suit with the trouser legs rolled up to keep the hems out of the mud. Chen, his wife and a half-dozen relatives worked at the factory on China's southern coast. Now they're all back in their rural village home earlier than expected for the country's biggest holiday, the Lunar New Year, with plenty of time on their hands. Slumping global demand has forced Chen and tens of millions of other rural migrants who power China's factories into an early vacation, sending them back to their villages and turning what is usually a festive break from grinding work into a period of gnawing uncertainty. Many don't know whether their factories will reopen and where else they can find work. Chen's village of Beiya in southwestern China's Sichuan province escaped largely unscathed from May's 7.9-magnitude earthquake, but the misty mountain region has little land and few opportunities beyond farming small plots of rice, corn, sweet potatoes and leafy greens. "If we don't go out to work, we can't make much money and we don't have any way to live," said Chen, whose farmland measures just one-twentieth of an acre. "Besides farming, there's nothing." The migrants' homecoming is flooding villages where wrinkled grandparents and ruddy-faced schoolchildren are the only residents for most of the year. The masses of unemployed and underemployed pose a major challenge for the Chinese government, which must cope with sinking economic growth while calming vast swaths of countryside that have grown used to large transfers of money from migrants working in factories and construction jobs in urban areas. Migrant workers have an average annual income of about 8,000 yuan ($1,170), while farmers make about 4,800 ($700), said Zhang Jianping, an economist at Minzu University of China. Research from the People's Bank of China says migrant workers contribute 65 percent of their rural family's income. China has an estimated 150 million rural migrants. In Yilong County, where Beiya is located, more than a quarter of its 1.08 million residents migrate off the farm to find work, according to the local labor bureau. Migrant laborers are likely to be patient about their troubled job prospects, Zhang and other economists said. "When the manufacturing industry is under crisis, peasants go back to farming. The countryside is a pool of human resources and when the economy booms, these people will go back to city again," Zhang said. Still, the effects of the global economic crisis are unfolding across the country just ahead of the Jan. 26 New Year, the most important holiday in China and a boost to consumer spending akin to Christmas in the West. The season marks the largest human migration on Earth, when 188 million people _ many of them rural workers _ squeeze onto trains to make it home for the "reunion meal." There was no rush, however, for Song Guiying, a 19-year-old whose job working 24-hour shifts every other day at a bag factory on the east coast abruptly ended in November when the manager told her there was no more work. She has been passing time by watching TV and hanging out with friends, and is not sure when work will start again. "When we left, the boss didn't know either," said Song, wearing a puffy gold coat and standing outside a bus station. "He said, 'You're on vacation now.' ... We weren't prepared for that at all." Despite having less to spend on goodies like clothes, sweets and fruit, signs of the holiday are everywhere in Yilong County. Workers strung red lanterns along the streets of the county seat, while groups of locals walked along winding mountain roads with New Year's purchases of woks, plastic washbasins and neatly folded cotton quilts. For Chen, the electronics factory worker, the furlough is his first New Year holiday at home in six years. When his factory hit difficult times, Chen's income dropped from 2,200 yuan ($320) in October to 1,500 ($220) in November. By last month, overtime had dwindled to nearly nothing and many were making only the base salary of 29 yuan ($4.25) for an eight-hour shift. Chen said he was happy to come home to spend time with his aged parents, who look after his 15-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter most of the year. "All I think is, I don't worry when I'm by my parents' side," he said. "This year, I said I should come home and see my parents ... to reunite with them and celebrate the New Year." His 20-year-old nephew had a different take. "Of course I'm happy to be home, but then you think about how hard it is going to be to find work next year. It's not a good situation," said Chen Jie, who has long fingernails like a girl, which among China's working class symbolizes a successful escape from farm labor. The unrelated Chen Qiqing, a 35-year-old who worked 10 years at a Taiwanese-owned shoe factory until it folded, is now considering rabbit farming as a way to stay home and look after her fifth-grade daughter. "I want to have a little business for myself at home. I don't want to 'go out' anymore," Chen Qiqing said, using migrant worker slang that means leaving the village. She was among 50 people at a recent government class on rabbit farming, held in an unheated school room in Erxinqiao Village. She plans to invest 20,000 yuan ($2,900), about half of it borrowed, to start her venture. "I hope to earn that back in a year," she said, laughing. "It's not wrong to think that, right?" She Shucheng, director of the Yilong County Labor Development Office, has noticed more people attending training courses, which also teach farmers how to raise silkworms for profit. "They hope to come back and learn a new skill, find a new career that they can have here. So they don't have to go out and work, they can stay in their home village and take care of their parents and children," She said. Most of Yilong's residents work in construction and may fare better than factory workers because Beijing has pledged to pour money into infrastructure to stimulate the economy. But those like Chen Xiaohong are left fretting about, for example, how to find enough money to repair or rebuild his farmhouse whose walls cracked in the May earthquake. "Sometimes in a year, we can only save a little more than 10,000 yuan ($1,460). We can't save that much because we need to smoke, or play mahjong every now and then, or have a drink with friends every three or four months," he said, watching buses full of migrants pass on the two-lane highway in front of his brother's farmhouse. Chen is asking around about job openings. He's heard of construction work in the western city of Xi'an, where he might find a job in bricklaying or carpentry with his shy, pink-cheeked wife. "She can pass boards to me. I'll work in the building and she'll be on the ground. We'll work together," he said. "We're not sure where we should go. Wherever there's work, that's where I'll go. Where there's money to be made, that's where I'll go." Email Story IM Story Printable View Blog This Recommend this article Average (0 votes) Sign in to recommend this article » Most Recommended Stories » Related Articles: Asia Pacific Australian convicted of insulting Thai monarchyAP - 2 hours 27 minutes ago Basketball: New ASEAN league to start in SeptemberChannel NewsAsia - Tuesday, January 20 Hard-liner to lead Seoul's NKorea policyAP - Tuesday, January 20 India keeps up pressure on Pakistan over MumbaiReuters - Tuesday, January 20 Sri Lanka searches for rebel leaderAP - Tuesday, January 20 Most Popular – Asia Pacific Viewed 'Overwhelming emotion' at star-studded inaugural concert Zimbabwe unveils $100 trillion banknote 'Dogs don't wear condoms,' says Baywatch star Anderson Faulty gene condemns millions in India to heart disease: study Hamas announces one-week truce after Israel ceasefire View Complete List » Search: Home Singapore Asia Pacific World Business Entertainment Sports Technology Top Stories Most Popular

Other News on Tuesday, 20 January 2009
Iraqis out stumping for votes in show of democracy
Israel to pull out of Gaza by Obama inauguration
Russia, Ukraine agree to end gas crisis
US-TECH Summary
Venezuela opposition attacked after Chavez speech | International |
Top Shiite cleric urges Iraqis to vote on Jan. 31
Kelly Osbourne Arrested For Slapping A Gossip Columnist
British trials to use stem cells for stroke, blindness
SAP, IBM to roll out first joint software "Alloy" in March
Zimbabwe talks at risk of collapse: opposition | International |
Israel-Hamas truce holds in Gaza
T-Mobile to offer G1 in more European countries
1 Shot, 4 Stabbed During "Notorious" Film Release
UN chief to visit Gaza on January 20: Israel
France and UK reportedly push for EU sanctions on Iran
SAP, IBM to roll out first joint software Alloy in March | Technology |
Australian convicted of insulting Thai monarchy
Basketball: New ASEAN league to start in September
Obama honors Martin Luther King on inauguration eve
Hard-liner to lead Seoul's NKorea policy
Iranian AIDS doctors sentenced to prison
Oil prices drop sharply as weak demand bites
Obama vows to renew America's promise
Sri Lanka searches for rebel leader
Day Before Inauguration, Obama Helps Paint Homeless Shelter
Afghan president claims defense deal with Russia
Japan Admits Chicago Likely To Win 2016 Olympic Hosting Bid
China reports second bird flu death this year
Bush Says Goodbye To World Leaders During Last Day As President
Obama Says On MLK Day, 'Remember His Lesson
Jobless migrants flood back to China's villages
US general: Kyrgyz base will not close
US says NKorea will face tough Obama
China plans own satellite navigation system by 2015: state media
Farmhouse from UK cult film Withnail up for sale | Entertainment |
Celebrities make service pledge videos to Obama on MySpace
Russia's music tunes in to international marketplace
Richemont sees dramatic drop in demand for luxury goods
Sting brings music, eco-message to Sundance fest
Balls for a cause, dresses for less for Obama inaugural
Group bids to cheer up Britons on Blue Monday
Japanese fado singer captivates Lisbon
Farmhouse from UK cult film "Withnail" up for sale
Afghan attacks kill three
Zimbabwe talks end without deal | International |
Jewish leaders object to Nazi imagery at rallies
Merkel hails German stimulus but warns again on debt
Shadow of vigilantes appears in Mexico drug war | International |
Music industry urged to embrace the Internet
Despite its threats, Hamas put up light resistance
RBS shares collapse on forecast of record annual loss
Medical 'microbot' to swim human arteries
Cuban dissident Paya calls for national dialogue | International |
Fairy godfather invites disadvantaged to inaugural ball
More than 40 trapped in South Korea fire: witness | International |
Salvador's leftists make gains in congress voting | International |
Myanmar fishermen survive month at sea in ice box | International |
French veteran photographer Marc Riboud wins award
Hopes high worldwide for Obama presidency: poll
Music industry urged to embrace the Internet | Technology |
Canada PM to Obama: Focus on financial system
Five killed in SKorean police raid: Yonhap
S'pore ministers' pay may be cut 20 pct this year-media
Australia's wine industry at a crisis crossroad
Australia says 2 fishermen rescued; report 18 lost
More than 40 trapped in South Korea fire
President Bush Commutes Two More Prison Sentences On Final Day
213 China families take milk case to highest court
Seoul shares open lower led by banks, techs
NZ inflation drops sharply to 3.4 percent
NZ inflation slows sharply, backs big rate cut
Dark indie film market sees faint light at Sundance | Entertainment |
Rapper 50 Cent expands empire to filmmaking | Entertainment |
US-ENTERTAINMENT Summary
French veteran photographer Marc Riboud wins award
Dark indie film market sees faint light at Sundance
British racial barriers breaking down: population study
CORRECTED: Gael Garcia Bernal does Cha Cha Cha at Sundance
Carrey, McGregor lock lips with `Phillip Morris'
Far fewer Americans see racism as major problem: poll
Klaus asks Czech govt to 'disavow' EU art exhibit
Israel set to quit Gaza before Obama inauguration | International |
North Korea steps up warnings against South | International |
Petraeus flies into Pakistan for govt talks
Apple sells used products for less in China
Gazprom will start gas supplies to Europe at 0700 GMT
Israel set to quit Gaza before inauguration
Russia says Europe gas flow to restart | International |
Russian human rights lawyer, reporter shot dead
China announces third bird flu death this year | International |
New York Times gets Slim financial lifeline
Australia state declares massive monsoon disaster | International |
EU voters resistant to further Afghan deployments: poll
US activists vent their rage as Bush exits
Thai political analyst charged with insulting king | International |
China fears containment as defense spending rises | International |
Kidnappers free Greek shipping magnate | International |
Guantanamo suspects defiant as uncertainty shrouds hearings
Pakistani militants kill 6 suspected US spies
With hopes and doubts, world awaits Obama
Indonesia to halt search for ferry victims
Apple sells used products for less in China | Technology |
Six killed in blaze during SKorea raid on protesters: police
NZ: Fiji may face more sanctions over no elections
US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,229
Shanghai ups food hygiene; coliform found in cakes
Cisco to sell servers with virtualization: report | Technology |
Delta, JetBlue Face Lawsuit From Flight Attendant Over Provocative Dress Requirement
Cambodia's KRouge court urges victims to join trial
Accused 9/11 Plotters Proud Of Murder, Welcome Death Penalty In Gitmo Trial
Thai army chief denies migrant cruelty: spokesman
Boy dies from bird flu in China, third death this month: state media
Avalanches Kill 3 Snowmobilers In Montana
Surgeons Separate Conjoined Twins In Oklahoma
China calls for better military ties under Obama
Two Supermarkets Recall Peanut Butter Crackers, Ice Cream
China city bans web users from posting about officials: report
Toyota names family scion as new president
FACTBOX-S.Korea to place 14 firms in banks-led restructuring
SKorea records first annual trade deficit for 11 years
Oil prices fall in Asian trade
Toyota taps founder's grandson as new president
Seoul shares fall 2 pct; banks tumble, but KTF up
Toyota says to reshuffle top management
Toyota to name new president as global sales fall
Toyota to announce new president
Toyota's global sales fell 4 percent in 2008
Brad Pitt, at 45, not worried about old age | Entertainment |
Broadcasters put all hands on deck for inauguration | Entertainment |
Quincy Jones joins Bono as newspaper columnist | Entertainment |
All you need is Net, '60s folkie Donovan says | Entertainment |
Brad Pitt, at 45, not worried about old age
Casting of big-screen Pilgrim progresses | Entertainment |
All you need is Net, '60s folkie Donovan says
Broadcasters put all hands on deck for inauguration
Casting of big-screen "Pilgrim" progresses
Ali salutes Obama at inaugural soiree
France's truffle purists sniff out Chinese 'impostors'
Quincy Jones joins Bono as newspaper columnist
New music services wow cellphone users
Dublin radio airs new U2 single
Brad Pitt, at 45, not worried about old age
Rapper 50 Cent expands empire to filmmaking
Flight Attendant Sues 2 Airlines For Rejecting Her 'Unprovocative' Outfit
UN chief Ban arrives in Gaza
Canadian blackberry maker RIM may appeal court block of takeover
Fiat vice head says 'discussions' held with Chrysler: agencies
Iraqis eager for first polls since 2005
Iraqis eager for first polls since 2005 | International |
Joy, poignancy in Washington with Obama on cusp of power
Russian gas shipments to Europe resume: Gazprom
China announces third bird flu death this year | International |
Saudi petrochem giant Sabic's profits sag on global crisis
Pakistan launches assault in NW, 20 militants dead | International |
Rwandan troops enter Congo to hunt Hutu rebels | International |
India tests missile amid tensions with Pakistan | International |
Germany's Merkel warns on U.S. auto subsidies
Thai PM will investigate migrant abuse charges
Karzai urges US-NATO to prevent civilian deaths
Chinese Premier Wen to visit Europe next week
Malaysia's ruling party blames unfriendly image for defeat: Najib
Obama Specials Wait Chicago Visitors
China announces third bird flu death this year
Cheney Hurts Back While Moving Out Of Naval Observatory; Will Attend Inauguration In Wheelchair
India test fires missile in province near Pakistan
In Dinner Honoring Rival, Obama Says McCain 'Driven By A Pure And Deep Love Of America'
16-year-old Chinese boy dies from H5N1 bird flu
First 100 Days Of Obama Expected To Rally Wall Street
Police clash with protesters in Seoul; 6 dead
Thai academic charged with insulting the king
South Korean spousal rapist commits suicide: police
Toyota taps founder's grandson as new president
Hong Kong stock index drops nearly 3 percent
WRAPUP 1-S.Korean banks sever credit to start corporate revamps
China financial cops linked to Gome tycoon case
Taiwan shares fall 2.8 percent
China shares rise on industry stimulus plan hopes
Japan's Mitsubishi Motors to suspend some Japan operations
Japan stocks lose ground amid Europe bank woes
More than 550,000 Chinese laid off by credit crisis in Q4: govt
Scammers Exploit Obama's "Resignation" To Spread Malware, Hijack Computers
Fake Websites Exploit Obama's "Resignation" To Hijack Computers
Iraq bringing home Saddam yacht from France
U.S. military kills 22 militants in Afghanistan | International |
Spanish government confirms six arrests in Islamist raids
Intel cuts prices of some processors: report
UN chief calls for accountability over school bombings in Gaza
Pakistan tells powers to stop demanding more | International |
Ban calls for accountability over UN school bombings in Gaza
Banks crisis haunts markets as Obama steps up
Arabs pledge aid to Gaza without consensus on mechanism
Rwandan troops enter DR Congo to pursue Hutu rebels
Fiat set to take 35% of Chrysler under signed deal
UN chief pays first visit to Gaza as truce holds
Chinese FA 'appoints new head'
A sea of people for Obama inauguration
Intel cuts prices of some processors: report | Technology |
US reaches deal on Afghan supply routes to troops
SKorean convicted of marital rape commits suicide
3 die after being knocked off train roof in India
OPEC chief says supply curbs to boost price
SKorea approves troop dispatch near Somalia
Police clash with protesters in Seoul; 6 dead
SKorea: NKorea still carrying out nuclear deal
China urges Hamas to 'face reality,' stop attacks
Obama Administration To Lunch On Apple Cinammon Sponge Cake, Other Abraham Lincoln Favorites Tuesday
Inauguration Feature: Housing And Tourism Leaders Optimistic Obama Stimulus Plans Could Benefit Florida
Inauguration Feature: Tampa Bay Resident's Thoughts On What Obama's Presidency Means To Florida
Inauguration Feature: Obama And The Coming Economy
Inauguration Feature: All Eyes On Washington
Potential buyers approach Satyam
Airline Passengers Score Misuse Of Patriot Act
Toyota returns to founding roots in choosing new
Defense Sec. Robert Gates Designated As Successor To Obama On Inauguration
Mitsubishi to halt main Japan plant for 3 weeks
Obama Inaugural Address To Focus On 'Responsibility' Of Government, Americans In Moving Nation Forward
Fiat To Take 35% Stake In Chrysler
National Association Of Home Builders Estimate 20 Percent Of Builders Have Closed The Past Two Years
Drown a moving love story in post-trauma New York | Entertainment |
Abu Dhabi Building City Of The Future That Will Run On Green Energy Sources
Netbooks Confuse Computer Retailers
In men's fashion, devil's in the detail
Flushed away: EU artwork removes Bulgarian toilet
Economic blues disappear at Milan's winter 2009 show
Sundance: Film fest welcomes futuristic flicks
Marc Anthony, Jennifer Lopez wow inaugural gala
Gore, enviros celebrate changing of the guard
Aretha Franklin warms up for inauguration
Misplaced Application Of Patriot Act Includes Terrorist Conviction For Minor Offenses Some Passengers Say
Ten-Year-Old Florida Reporters Gets Credentials To Cover Obama Inauguration
Hundreds Fell Off Train Roof After Trees Sweep Them In India
Ghost 'Haunts' Cop's Cell Phone Video
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights

USD EUR - 1 year graph		BlogMeter 1.01