- As China's job market shrinks, a rush
of newcomers is oversaturating gig
economy jobs like ride-hailing.
It's eating into the income of existing
full-timers like Li Weimin, and dragging out his work hours.
He's near Shanghai's most prominent train station, which
used to be a hot pickup spot.
But he's out of luck or possibly the competition
for customers is now just much tougher.
LI WEIMIN: I must persist, because after all,
due to the effects of the pandemic,
even if I want to give up this job,
it's difficult to find other jobs now.
There is no other job to find.
- China saw 400,000 new registered ride-hailing drivers
in the sector between April and July, flooding
the market with a 7% surge.
It comes as the world's second largest economy has sputtered,
trying to pivot out of some of the world's harshest lockdowns,
with youth unemployment soaring.
China's Statistics Bureau said on Tuesday,
it would suspend releasing youth jobless data
after record-high readings-- over a fifth unemployed as
of June.
Market analyst Wang Ke points out ride-hailing naturally
became the first choice for quick cash
for a growing number of jobless people.
WANG KE: Because of the impact of three years of the pandemic,
many companies and small enterprises
may have gone bankrupt or gone out of business.
So a lot of idle labor will enter the market.
There's also been a sharp decline in the number of jobs.
There are some advantages from the perspective
of ride-hailing.
First of all, it has a higher degree
of freedom than other jobs.
Compared to a job where you need to clock in at work,
you can pick up customers or just start working
whenever you want to stop.
Second, online ride-hailing has a relatively low
threshold for entry.
- Some cities like Shanghai have suspended issuing
new ride-hailing permits.
But even with less drivers, economists
say, making a living is likely to become more
difficult for many people in China
as it enters a period of much slower economic growth.
For many in the ride-hailing sector,
each day is bleaker than the last,
working longer hours to earn the same money they did months ago.
It's the only option for those with family
to support like Zhu Zhimin, who spends
15 hours behind the wheel.
ZHU ZHIMIN: The only thing on my mind every day
is just making money because our parents are getting old,
my kids are going to junior high, high school.
Conditions for my family aren't great.
So why am I so hard-working?
It's because there are a lot of ways my family
needs to use the money.