The workplace crisis in mainland China is spreading — tens of millions are desperate for work

First, let's focus on a serious phenomenon. In mainland China, 35 years old has become the invisible ceiling of the workplace. Many elites who were once high-spirited have to leave the workplace just because they are 35 years old. At the same time, fresh graduates are flooding out of school only to find no jobs waiting. It's like, graduate today, unemployed tomorrow, has become the new normal. In traditional Chinese culture, it is said that 30 years old is the best age to stand on one's own feet. In other words, 35 years old should be the golden age of one's career. But the reality is sad. 35 years old has become the upper limit of recruitment for many companies. Even an interview notice is very luxurious. A large number of middle-aged people are forced to bid farewell to the workplace. Shenzhen blogger Lao Ma said that a former AI project director in Shenzhen shared his experience with him. The director said, I was laid off at the age of 35. I went to interview at three companies today, and I was rejected without exception because I was too old. One of the companies was introduced by a friend. The interviewer, born in the 2000s, told me directly that if it weren't for the introduction by a friend, we basically wouldn't consider people at the age of 35. Lao Ma said that he felt extremely ironic when he heard his words. Because he was a project director, he didn't expect that he would be where he is today. Lao Ma said frankly that Shenzhen has high prices and astonishing consumption. He is burdened with mortgages and car loans, and he deeply understands the cruelty of the 35-year-old midlife crisis. After being laid off, he couldn't find a job and had to turn to self-media. Nowadays, there are many bloggers like Lao Ma. Blogger Wolf Brother said that he is a programmer with a master's degree, but he was laid off in April last year. A few days ago, one of his good friends was also laid off. His friend's wife does not work and stays at home to take care of the baby full-time. His father-in-law and mother-in-law do not have jobs and have lived in his house for many years. The whole family depends on him for support. Now that he has no job, how will he live in the future? The once glorious financial circle is no exception. Uncle Blanket, a financial figure, said recently that elites around 40 years old are disappearing in batches. Some time ago, he was going to do a project and wanted to contact an old colleague he hadn't seen for many years. Looking through his circle of friends, he found that he hadn't updated for three years, as if he had evaporated from the face of the earth. After a private chat, he learned that he had left the workplace a long time ago. Now, more and more middle-aged people in various industries are being laid off, and after losing their jobs, it is difficult for them to find new jobs. The main reason is that they can't compete with young people physically. They have heavy burdens and high salary requirements. Most importantly, because they have qualifications and resources, companies are worried about difficult management, and even afraid that they will take away customers. Therefore, the competitiveness of middle-aged people in the job market is extremely low. Because they have no jobs, many middle-aged people try to engage in self-media, hoping to find a new way out. But the reality is cruel, and very few can really stick to it and support themselves. After trying for a few months, many people have to return to the long-job search under economic pressure. It is reported that many people who are unemployed do not want to worry their families, so they go out as usual every day. They carry their computers and go to libraries, coffee shops, study rooms, or even sit in the car to watch TV series, play games, and modify their resumes, pretending that they are still at work. What is even more ironic is that a large number of post-90s have to face the reality of unemployment, while a large number of post-00s cannot find a job. A blogger lamented that the wave of unemployment amid the economic downturn is no longer a crisis limited to a certain age group. It is like a huge net that quietly covers everyone's head. From young people who have just graduated from school to veterans who have worked for more than 10 years, everyone is looking for a Litchi market crashes. Fruit fed to cows. Farmers in Guangdong break down in tears. This year, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan had a huge litchi harvest. But with the economy in shambles, prices have totally collapsed, dropping to just 1 yuan or even a few cents per caddy. They can't sell them, so they're feeding them to cows and pigs, or just dumping them in fields or by the roadside. Farmers say they've never seen litchis sell for so little, and many can't hold back their tears. Recently, tons of videos have popped up all over Chinese social media. Litchi growers and sellers are crying out, the market is horrible, and in many places, prices have dropped to under 1 yuan per caddy. Some are so desperate they're selling at a loss, begging buyers to take them for just 50 cents. In the videos you can see litchi trucks packed at buying points in Guangdong and Guangxi. There's fruit everywhere, but not enough buyers. One blogger said there are more sellers than buyers. Some farmers drive around all day looking for a place to sell, but in the end, they have to dump their litchis on the side of the road, or in their fields. Some families pick up those dumped litchis and feed them to their cows, pigs, or chickens. Another blogger said, Litchis are everywhere. Each household has hundreds or even thousands of kilos, but no one wants them. Buyers offer as little as 0.5 yuan per kilo. Compared to last year, it's a total collapse. Some farmers don't even bother picking. They just let the fruit rot on the trees or feed it to chickens. On June 18, Jiupai News reported that Mr. Su, head of a litchi co-op in Gaozhou, Maoming, confirmed prices had dropped to just over 1 yuan per caddy. In past years, prices never dipped below 6 yuan. His co-op grows litchis on nearly 200 acres, but even in this bumper year, they only harvested 80,000 to 90,000 caddies. Almost half went to waste. Mr. Su said that seeing the market crash, he gave up. I just don't pick anymore. It's really not worth it. The money I'd make wouldn't even cover labor. Why bother? He said only the more expensive guiwei variety is still being picked and sold. In recent years, as China's economy stagnates, officials keep pushing the so-called bright economic outlook. But behind the scenes, they're trying to cover up just how bad the litchi market really is. The Maoming Agricultural Bureau told mainland media that the low prices were just a rare case, claiming most markets are normal. On June 14, Communist Party mouthpiece People's Daily reported from Maoming, China's largest litchi-growing city, saying it was "...golden all year round." They quoted fruit farmers proudly saying, "...it's hard work, but it's sweet." A village was said to have 13,000 tons of production and an output value of 150 million yuan. But that same report made zero mention of the price crash. On June 24, the blogger Happy said the phrase 10 yuan for three caddies is everywhere now. Some people are thrilled with fruit freedom, but fruit farmers are heartbroken. Is it really freedom? Is it something to be happy about? she asked. Farmers keep telling me why even bother picking. The price doesn't even cover the workers. Just let them rot. She added, Fertilizer gets more expensive every year. Farmers work from dawn to dusk, sweating under the burning sun, bitten by bugs, just hoping for a good harvest. But in the end, there's no joy, just despair. Cheap fruit doesn't even pay back what they spent. Some Taiwanese netizens said that back in the day, Taiwan used to turn surplus fruit into canned litchis. At least they were used. But others raised food safety concerns. Chinese litchis are often sprayed heavily with pesticides, and supermarket fruits are loaded with preservatives for long-haul transport. Factories shuttered. Dreams shattered. Inside China's mass unemployment wave. Mainland China is at a crossroads, with international corporations leaving the Chinese market one by one, companies and factories shutting down en masse, and widespread unemployment. Things are worsening as the new year approaches. In this wave of unemployment, anyone could be the next unfortunate person dragged down. The current wave of unemployment is not just a simple economic fluctuation, but a profound social earthquake. What is the current unemployment rate in China? Some time ago, the community committee called me and asked if I was at home. I was confused. But she said she would come to my house to conduct a survey. I asked her what it was about. She said she came to verify whether I was working, whether I had a stable income, and how much I earned to compile statistics. Since they called me in advance to schedule an appointment, I was surprised and asked if they would verify this with every household. She said that two households in each building in a community were randomly selected, and one of them happened to be mine. The reason is amusing. She thought that, as a young person, I would likely have a job making the process easier to handle. What does easier to handle even mean? Do they just want to count groups of people who are highly employable? Now you understand how accurate the statistical unemployment rate might be. I found the unemployment figures provided by the CCP government to be completely false. Later, I made the appointment, and two comrades came to ask about my income. I said it wasn't much, and then they decided to fill in 3,000 yuan. Well, that's quite detailed. When they left, they gave me a supermarket voucher worth 20 yuan about 2.8 US dollars, and asked me to take a photo with it, saying they would upload it to their system. So I was quite lucky because I got an extra 20 yuan voucher. This practice, to some extent, reflects the commercialization of interactions between people in modern society. Behind this unemployment rate lies the self-awareness of each family and the simplified digital economy. When unemployment rate statistics become a formality, the expectation of authenticity may rest only on the 20 yuan voucher. What we are facing now is no longer just the difficulty of finding a job, but the crisis of an education system entirely out of touch with modern society. In other words, today's school education still uses methods from the last century to teach students of this century and prepare them for the world of the next century. It's like using an expired map to navigate east, west, north, and south. The result is bound to be disorientation. What students learn in school today is often outdated by the time they graduate, or even before they graduate. In this case, how can they find a foothold in society? What's worse is that current education still uses the same standard to measure all children. No matter what your interests or dreams are, they are all forced into the same mold. The CCP has used an educational model to brainwash people from childhood to adulthood. Yates once said, Education is not filling a bucket but lighting a fire. Only by breaking this mold can the sparks of thought burst freely in every corner. The unemployment wave itself is not terrifying. What's terrifying is thinking you can escape it by muddling through, unaware that the times have already left you behind. Perhaps you can't stop the tides rise and fall, but you can ensure you are not the empty shell washed ashore. Friends, I feel really bad right now. I had another quarrel with my wife last night. We were originally discussing whether to actually sell the house. Then we talked about the issues with my original family, and that led to a quarrel. In fact, I feel really bad. When I coaxed my son to sleep last night, I cried while telling him a story. I feel like a failure. I have been in Beijing for more than 10 years. When I was young, I was full of vigor and vitality. I wanted to achieve something and provide a good life for my wife and children in the future. But now I don't have a good life, and I still owe a lot of foreign debt. The blogger said that sometimes he understands why his wife quarrels with him. From her perspective, as a husband and the head of the family, he should have been the one supporting them. But now, not only does he fail to do that, but many things still require his wife to manage. In recent years, his mother-in-law and father-in-law have helped them a lot, not only by taking care of the children, but also by providing financial support. He was especially grateful because he was not an ungrateful person. I also wanted to become independent earlier and not let them worry about me, but I haven't managed to do it yet. Looking back, I have been in Beijing for more than 10 years. My youth and career are gone, and now even my home may be gone. I don't know whether Beijing is worth staying in, or if there is any meaning in staying. But if I leave Beijing, where can I go? My hometown has not developed at all. Go to my wife's hometown? Farm? It may not be realistic. And sometimes, deep down, I feel very unwilling. I can't believe that in such a big city like Beijing, there is no place for me to stay. Do I really have no way to take root and establish myself here through my own efforts? But now, now I am also confused. Should I leave or stay? I am a programmer at a large internet company. I have been with the company for almost 14 years. This layoff was actually within my expectations, and I received N plus 1 compensation. Since I started working, I have been working overtime every day. On top of that, I have very poor sleep. My body has been severely overworked, and I have undergone two cancer operations. In fact, I think that being able to persist until now, for the sake of my career, has been an achievement in itself. At present, she has sold her house in Beijing, and is about to end her 18 years of drifting in Beijing to return to Shandong. I've finally made it. I've been waiting for so long. But I still feel sad when I think about leaving. When I think about everything I've experienced in the past 18 years, I feel a My husband and I will end our life in Beijing and return to our hometown today. This time, I may never come to Beijing again. I was only 24 when I came here, and now I'm 35. As long as you have been to Beijing, you will feel extremely happy no matter where you go. I'm tired of Beijing. I'm really tired of Beijing. Why do people choose such a difficult way of life for themselves? China's current economic situation can be said to be worse than before. Many Chinese men can no longer afford family expenses. According to a survey by CICC, among the 1.4 billion people in the country, only 700,000 earn a monthly salary of more than 20,000 yuan. The so-called labor support rate refers to how many people an adult can support. So what does this data mean? Simply put, the income of many Chinese men is no longer enough to cover family expenses. And this issue is not an exaggeration. The data is indeed accurate. In the United States, the labor support ratio is about 4.8, meaning one adult can support 4.8 people. That's why you see many American families with full-time housewives and multiple children. In Japan and South Korea, this indicator is also 3.8, meaning one adult can support 3 to 4 people. What about China? Our labor support ratio is 1 to 1, which means one adult can only support themselves. In other words, it is almost impossible for a wife to be a full-time housewife and raise a child. This year, at the end of the year, some abnormal events, some things will suddenly happen. I feel that there will be more. The blogger said that at the end of the year, events such as creditors demanding debts and bosses running away often break out in a concentrated manner. He suggested that if you owe someone money, in previous years, you might have been able to argue. But this year, try to pay as much as possible, safety first. Don't be the last straw that breaks the camel's back. Zhejiang garment factories facing wave of closures, bosses, say this year is really difficult. The economy in mainland China is deteriorating, and small and micro enterprises are suffering even more. Recently, it was revealed online that 26 garment factory bosses in Zhukang town, Zhejiang province, fled in just one month. Industry insiders lament that businesses cannot see a future, and the situation is grim. On December 2nd, several villages in Sukun town, Haining, Jiaxing, Zhejiang province, were reported to have experienced garment factory closures, with bosses fleeing and employees being owed wages. Some netizens claimed that 26 garment factory bosses in Sukun town had run away. The garment factory market is struggling. They were still in production last night, but today the bosses have disappeared, one remarked. Other factory partners noted that many factories are closing, bosses can't pay wages and flee, and some desperate employees are even threatening to jump off buildings. Mr. Xiao, who formerly ran a clothing factory in Jiaxing, Zhejiang, told the Epoch Times, it is extremely costly to maintain a small factory, especially in the low-profit manufacturing industry. Every winter and summer, the government imposes power restrictions, forcing us to take holidays. If we cannot process orders when they come in, we suffer losses. I constantly worry about paying wages and rely on operating loans to survive. The rent will increase next year, and the company can't see any future, he added. Some bosses have no money to pay wages, so they run away. Many are suffering from depression. Data reveals that in the first half of 2023, the clothing industry led all sectors in store closures, with 1,831 stores shutting down. Additionally, 1.233 million clothing-related companies were deregistered in China during this period, marking a 41.5% year-on-year increase. Dong Zhentao, a former clothing business owner in Yiwu, Zhejiang, shared with the Epoch Times, In the past, we processed materials for foreign companies, and they paid us on time. After the pandemic, many foreign-funded factories moved to Southeast Asian countries like Vietnam and Malaysia. Additionally, the United States increased tariffs, which severely restricted the export of Chinese-made products. Most cannot be exported and are forced to be sold domestically. Clothing is unsaleable. Products cannot be sold, and funds cannot be recovered, leading to broken capital chains. Some factories even advance their own funds to keep operations running, but when companies fail to pay them, the funds remain unrecovered. The bosses then have no money to pay workers' wages and are left with no choice but to flee.