#你认为以后打工的人会越来越少吗? #
With the end of the Spring Festival, it is traditionally the time when migrant workers return to the city on a large scale. But this year, after talking to a few friends who have returned to their hometowns, I noticed a change: in the past two years, the number of people choosing to work outside the home has decreased. This trend is also reflected in official figures: in 2022, the number of migrant workers moving across provinces and provinces was 171.9 million, a decrease of 2.35 million from 174.25 million in 2019. This change suggests that more and more migrant workers are preferring to work locally rather than travel abroad.
Although employment opportunities and income levels are generally lower in rural areas than in urban areas, the pandemic has changed this dynamic in recent years. Through interviews, I learned that several migrant workers in the construction industry shared their real thoughts:
1. Aging migrant workers: Lao Mai, a migrant worker approaching 60 years old, represents the plight of a generation. As they get older, it becomes increasingly difficult for them to do heavy physical work on the construction site. Lao Mai and his peers have found that continuing to work on construction sites is no longer feasible as they get older, and that many construction companies are no longer hiring older migrant workers for heavy physical labor.
2. Economic considerations: Lao Chen, a 55-year-old migrant worker, expressed a reassessment of the economic benefits of going out to work. He mentioned that as he gets older, the appeal of going out to work diminishes. Lao Chen and other migrant workers have found that the narrowing income gap between working near their hometown and going abroad, coupled with the lower cost of living, makes staying in their hometown more attractive.
3. The impact of the pandemic: Lao Liu's story highlights the disruption of the pandemic to migrant workers' plans to go out to work. He tried to go out to work three times in a year, but each time he was interrupted by the pandemic. The pandemic has not only increased the risk of going out, but has also led to uncertainty about job opportunities, making many migrant workers choose to stay at home.
During the interview, I was deeply aware of the challenges faced by migrant workers. Their work tends to be physically reliant and becomes more difficult as they get older. As urbanization progresses, the number of migrant workers may gradually decrease, but their contribution to urban development is indelible.
Whether they choose to stay or go out to work, migrant workers' decisions reflect their consideration of family, income and personal safety. Their stories remind us that society should provide more support and respect to this group to ensure that their hard work is duly rewarded. With the development of society, we expect that migrant workers will have more choices and better living conditions in the future.