What China's Migrant Numbers Say About Labor Discrimination
What China's Migrant Numbers Say About Labor Discrimination
- Every year, the Chinese government publishes two numbers for its millions-strong army of migrant workers. But what to make of the fact that one of these numbers is growing, while the other is shrinking?
One figure, called liudong renkou, or “floating population,” stood at 245 million people in 2016, and has been shrinking since 2014. However, on Tuesday the vice minister of human resources and social security, Qiu Xiaoping, said the country’s population of nongmingong, or “rural laborers,” grew to 282 million last year, increasing by 4.24 million compared to 2015.
- Every year, the Chinese government publishes two numbers for its millions-strong army of migrant workers. But what to make of the fact that one of these numbers is growing, while the other is shrinking?
One figure, called liudong renkou, or “floating population,” stood at 245 million people in 2016, and has been shrinking since 2014. However, on Tuesday the vice minister of human resources and social security, Qiu Xiaoping, said the country’s population of nongmingong, or “rural laborers,” grew to 282 million last year, increasing by 4.24 million compared to 2015.