Title: Chinese Worried About Unemployment as New Year Approaches
As the Spring Festival approaches, Chinese people embark on their journey back home, but worries about work and the economic downturn have cast a shadow over the long-awaited family reunions.
According to a report by Deutsche Welle Chinese, the Lunar New Year period from February 10 to 17 is usually a time for people to celebrate and relax. But this year many Chinese people say they are worried that their employers don’t know when, or even if, they will be asked to go back to work.
Wang Jinzhu, a 42-year-old worker at an electric toothbrush manufacturer shared his concerns, stating that “Business is not very good” and that he anticipates life to be more difficult in the upcoming year. The company exports most of its products to the United States and Europe, and sales fell 30% last year.
With China facing 15 consecutive months of falling producer prices, many Chinese factories are locked in endless price wars for a shrinking market. This economic downturn has not only depressed corporate profit margins but also endangered workers’ incomes and jobs.
During this year’s Spring Festival travel, many Chinese faced difficult journeys due to heavy snow and freezing weather, with some people being trapped on highways or high-speed trains for hours. This widespread travel is predicted to hit a record high of 9 billion passengers during the Spring Festival.
In recent months, the Chinese government has stepped up efforts to promote economic confidence to reassure anxious financial markets, even as the country’s stock market remains near five-year lows. However, many workers and business owners remain skeptical about the economic outlook for the year ahead.
Wu Kan, who owns a small dredger company, expressed his concerns about the economic situation after the epidemic and stated that everyone is generally short of money. For him, one of the options to deal with the situation is to close the company.
The economic uncertainties and worries about unemployment have put a damper on the long-anticipated celebrations of the Chinese New Year. The worries about jobs and financial stability continue to loom large over the lives of millions of Chinese workers as they journey home for the New Year celebrations.