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Migrant workers 'strain stability'

MORE than 100 million young rural migrant workers rushing to Chinese cities are straining social stability, China's official trade union said in a report.

Unlike their fathers, the new generation of migrant workers does not only want to make some money, but also dream of getting married in cities and having a decent urban life, according to the All-China Federation of Trade Unions.

The report said 71.4 percent of those interviewed said they chose to come to cities to have some fun and to realize their dreams.

But their goals are frustrated by measly pay and the strict household registration system, the report said.

"The accumulation of their demands has begun to have negative effects on our country's social stability and sustainable economic development," the report said.

Though most were from farming villages, the report said 89.4 percent of young migrants did not know how to farm.

They don't intend to go back to their economically backwards homes either, because they were not bonded by their families.

Compared to their predecessors, of whom 80 percent had wives and children when they left their hometowns, over 80 percent of the new generation of migrants weren't married when they came to look for a job. An estimated 100 million youngsters with an average age of 23 were single at the time.

That makes loneliness a huge problem for young workers, with more than 70 percent of those interviewed saying this was difficult.

The report recommended relaxing China's household registration system to make migrant workers feel more at home. It also admitted that delayed pay was a major reason for the workers' protests.



 

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