Advertisement
China jobs
Economy

As lay-offs hit, China’s unemployed find sanctuary in Communist Party centres

Chinese jobseekers use free office space to establish routines and hide their employment status from families while looking for work

2-MIN READ2-MIN
Listen
China's unemployed are using Communist Party community service centres as free office space to job hunt. Photo: Handout
He Huifengin Guangdong

Most mornings, Joey Zhang can be found in an unusual setting for young professionals: with her laptop open and her bag placed beside her chair, she sits in a Communist Party community service centre in Guangzhou – a facility traditionally occupied by retirees and custodial workers when it isn’t sitting empty.

About four months ago, Zhang worked as a brand planner at a private advertising company and spent her mornings in a high-rise office. Then came a round of lay-offs after her employer began cutting staff, as artificial intelligence increasingly replaced parts of marketing and brand planning work, leaving her among those let go.
Suddenly unemployed, Zhang, now in her 30s, found herself struggling in a slowing job market with long, often anxious days. At first, she tried using cafes to job hunt. But the extensive search quickly left her with anxiety over her choice of haven.

“At Starbucks, a 30-yuan coffee only buys you a few hours of space,” she said. “I had to keep a white-collar look just to justify sitting there and I didn’t feel comfortable sitting there too long with staff and other people around me. It felt awkward.”

In May, a neighbour told her about a community service centre nearby. Curious, she went to look. When she saw the free air conditioning, free Wi-fi and power outlets, she knew she would come back.

Initially intended primarily for party activities, many of these service centres have been renovated into spaces accessible to all residents in recent years. The trend comes amid a broader campaign state media and local governments refer to as an effort to improve community services and public facilities, with China Daily calling the revamped centres “living rooms for all”.

In megacities such as Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Shanghai, they often offer low-priced canteens, study space and reading corners to the public.
Advertisement
Select Voice
Select Speed
1.00x