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The puzzle of migrant labour shortage and rural labour surplus in China

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  • Knight, John
  • Deng, Quheng
  • Li, Shi

Abstract

The paper examines the contentious issue of the extent of surplus labour that remains in China. China was an extreme example of a surplus labour economy, but the rapid economic growth during the period of economic reform requires a reassessment of whether the second stage of the Lewis model has been reached or is imminent. The literature is inconclusive. On the one hand, there are reports of migrant labour scarcity and rising migrant wages; on the other hand, estimates suggest that a considerable pool of relatively unskilled labour is still available in the rural sector. Yet the answer has far-reaching developmental and distributional implications. After reviewing the literature, the paper uses the 2002 and 2007 national household surveys of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences to analyse and explain migrant wage behaviour, to predict the determinants of migration, and to examine the size and nature of the pool of potential rural–urban migrants. An attempt is also made to project the rural and urban labour force and migration forward to 2020, on the basis of the 2005 1% Population Survey. The paper concludes that for institutional reasons both phenomena are likely to coexist at present and for some time in the future.

Suggested Citation

  • Knight, John & Deng, Quheng & Li, Shi, 2011. "The puzzle of migrant labour shortage and rural labour surplus in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 585-600.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:chieco:v:22:y:2011:i:4:p:585-600
    DOI: 10.1016/j.chieco.2011.01.006
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Knight, John & Song, Lina, 1999. "The Rural-Urban Divide: Economic Disparities and Interactions in China," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198293309, Decembrie.
    2. Fung Kwan, 2009. "Agricultural labour and the incidence of surplus labour: experience from China during reform," Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 7(3), pages 341-361.
    3. Nazrul Islam & Kazuhiko Yokota, 2008. "Lewis Growth Model and China's Industrialization," Asian Economic Journal, East Asian Economic Association, vol. 22(4), pages 359-396, December.
    4. Knight, John & Song, Lina, 2006. "Towards a Labour Market in China," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199215553, Decembrie.
    5. Zhao, Yaohui, 1999. "Labor Migration and Earnings Differences: The Case of Rural China," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 47(4), pages 767-782, July.
    6. Brandt, Loren & Holz, Carsten A, 2006. "Spatial Price Differences in China: Estimates and Implications," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 55(1), pages 43-86, October.
    7. John Knight & Linda Yueh, 2009. "Segmentation or competition in China's urban labour market?," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 33(1), pages 79-94, January.
    8. Guifu Chen & Shigeyuki Hamori, 2009. "Solution to the Dilemma of the Migrant Labor Shortage and the Rural Labor Surplus in China," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 17(4), pages 53-71, July.
    9. Leng Lee & Xin Meng, 2010. "Why Don’t More Chinese Migrate from the Countryside? Institutional Constraints and the Migration Decision," Chapters, in: Xin Meng & Chris Manning & Li Shi & Tadjuddin Nur Effendi (ed.), The Great Migration, chapter 2, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    10. Xin Meng & Chris Manning & Li Shi & Tadjuddin Nur Effendi (ed.), 2010. "The Great Migration," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 13619.
    11. Fang Cai, 2008. "Approaching a Triumphal Span: How Far Is China Towards its Lewisian Turning Point?," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2008-09, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    12. Yang Du & Weiguang Pan, 2009. "Minimum Wage Regulation in China and Its Applications to Migrant Workers in the Urban Labor Market," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 17(2), pages 79-93, March.
    13. Knight, John & Gunatilaka, Ramani, 2010. "Great Expectations? The Subjective Well-being of Rural-Urban Migrants in China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(1), pages 113-124, January.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    China; Demographic transition; Labour market; Lewis turning point; Migrant wages; Migrant workers; Surplus labour;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J11 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • O11 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O17 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements

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