China's youth under stress as unemployment soars to 11-month high

New Delhi, Sep 10 With youth unemployment surging to an 11-month high in China, several stressed jobless youth in the country leave home every day and "pretend to work" while sitting in libraries and cafes, while their families think they are doing regular jobs, according to a media report.

Some of the jobless graduates even rent desks in mock offices so that they can spend time while searching for jobs without feeling lonely, as others are also seated in the shared space while being engaged in the same task, according to a report in Channel NewsAsia (CAN).

The report is based on extensive interviews with jobless graduates and other youngsters in China's Shanghai and Hangzhou cities.

These spaces with computers, desks, meeting rooms and internet access are springing up in major Chinese cities like Shanghai, Shenzhen and Chengdu.

The report cited one young jobseeker as saying "pretending to work" gives her a sense of routine and privacy from family as she continues her job search.

Others said that keeping their families in the dark about their jobless status helped to reduce tension for near and dear ones, as otherwise they would also be very worried. In the meantime, the unemployed youth are desperately searching for jobs as they live on past savings.

However, finding jobs is not easy, as one youth told CAN that she had made around 1,000 applications and got interview calls only for four offers, which too did not land her any job.

China's youth unemployment rate rose to its highest level in 11 months in July. The urban jobless rate for the 16-24 age group, excluding students, rose to 17.8 per cent, as a record number of graduates entered the job market.

Much like the idiom of "lying flat", the act of pretending to work carries a tone of self-mockery and playful resignation, said Zhan Yang, an associate professor of cultural anthropology at Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU).

The report also quotes an associate professor of culture and anthropology at Hong Kong Polytechnic University as saying, "It is especially tough in China, where one's self-worth remains deeply entangled with a culture that values work and productivity. Pretending to work is a way for youth to maintain routines, identities, and social belonging in the absence of meaningful labour."

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