Average Age Rises from 34 to 43 After 16 Years
Less Than Half Are Under 40... Increase in Those Over 50
China's migrant workers, who leave their rural hometowns to work in cities, are rapidly aging. The proportion of workers under 40 is less than half, while the share of those aged 50 and above has surged.
On the 9th, China’s First Financial Daily cited the recently released "Migrant Worker Monitoring Survey Report" by the National Bureau of Statistics, reporting that the average age of migrant workers last year was 43.1 years, nearly 9 years higher than 34 years in 2008 over a span of 16 years. During the same period, the proportion of workers under 40, which was around 70%, dropped to 44.6% last year. In absolute numbers, it is estimated to have decreased by more than 25 million to 133 million in 2023 compared to 2008. Conversely, the proportion of migrant workers aged 50 and above surged from 12.1% in 2010 to 30.6% in 2023.
The overall growth rate of migrant workers has been continuously declining since 2010. Especially in 2020, when COVID-19 spread, the number decreased by 1.8% compared to the previous year. Last year, however, the total number of migrant workers rose to 297.53 million, an increase of 1.91 million (0.6%) from the previous year, showing signs of recovery.
Based on previously published aggregated data, First Financial Daily analyzed that the proportion of migrant workers engaged in the tertiary industry has been steadily increasing. Last year, the share of workers in the tertiary sector was 54%, a sharp rise from 43% ten years ago. In contrast, the proportion employed in the relatively stable and higher-paying manufacturing sector was only 27.5% last year, down 9.7 percentage points from 37.2% in 2008. The share of those working in construction is estimated to have slightly increased by 1.6 percentage points to 15.4% compared to 2008.
Looking at the average monthly income of migrant workers by industry, the average monthly income in manufacturing was 4,780 yuan (approximately 904,901 KRW), up 1.8%. Construction income rose 2.4% to 5,488 yuan, and wholesale and retail trade increased 5.1% to 4,181 yuan. Additionally, income in warehousing and postal services recorded a 3.2% increase to 5,469 yuan. Accommodation and food services saw a 4.6% rise to 3,998 yuan, while service sectors such as housing services and repairs increased 2.3% to 3,965 yuan.
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