China’s jobseekers search for ‘stability’ as coronavirus and regulatory crackdowns take toll

More Chinese are abandoning their search for once-coveted private sector jobs and pursuing a stable career in the public sector

The job market has undergone big changes in the past two years amid a virus-induced economic slump and regulatory tightening

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China’s labour market has undergone big changes this year as a result of regulatory tightening and a pandemic-induced economic slump. Illustration: SCMP

Published: 1:36pm, 30 Dec 2021Updated: 5:38pm, 30 Dec 2021

Zhang Qijing left China for the United Kingdom in October last year to pursue a master’s degree she hoped would help her change her career path. Business at the inbound travel agency she worked for was decimated by coronavirus pandemic travel restrictions and she wanted a fresh start.

A higher degree would give her an edge in the labour market and help secure a more stable job as a public school teacher, she said. Pursuing further education seemed like an efficient way to wait out the pandemic too.

But when the 26-year-old returned home a year later, armed with a new diploma, she found herself in the middle of cutthroat competition, as top talent – both new graduates and workers laid off by private companies – abandoned their search for once-coveted private sector jobs and pursued more stable career prospects as public servants.

“The competition wasn’t nearly as intense before the pandemic, especially because people previously working for tutoring organisations now want to work in the public school system too,” said Zhang, who to boost her job prospects has taken dozens of tests for public sector jobs, as well as exams for a teacher’s qualification certificate.

“Now everyone wants to play it safe. The growing number of outstanding candidates keeps raising the bar, and the interviewees for public schools all have master’s or doctoral degrees from [top universities such as] Tsinghua or Peking.”

In July, the government cracked down on the after-school tutoring industry, leaving tens of millions of workers with an uncertain future and tens of thousands more jobless.