Young homeless in Guangdong sleep under bridges as social media floods with unemployment complaints.

She's my children. China's economy continues to decline, and the employment and living conditions of young people are alarming. Recently, it was reported online that many large companies in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, have been unable to pay wages for half a year. And even state-owned enterprises are laying off employees and cutting salaries. Many young vagrants sleep on the roadside and under bridges. There is a wave of crying about unemployment on mainland social media. Ex-account Wu Wangwudi released multiple videos sharing that the collapse of China's economy is unimaginable, and the people are suffering. Workers are exhausted and crying. The unemployed sleep on the streets. Young people scavenge for garbage. Iron rice bowl units are laying off employees, and civil servants are facing salary cuts. In addition, companies are running away. Shops are closing. Hospitals can't pay wages. Banks are unable to disperse money. People are protesting on rooftops. Teachers are breaking down. Students are jumping off buildings. Canteens are in chaos. Hospitals are full of pneumonia cases, and the streets are plagued with violence. According to the video, a young woman said that the current situation in Guangzhou might be unbelievable to those hearing it. Many large companies in certain groups haven't paid wages for half a year. Many companies, including state-owned enterprises, are laying off employees and cutting wages. And most small companies are on the verge of bankruptcy. Even the once-envied internet sector is laying off employees, with thousands of people dismissed at a time. I am one of them. Even highly educated talents from 985 and 211 universities cannot escape the fate of unemployment, let alone ordinary people like us. The woman said, frustrated. She noted that her classmates either faced staff reductions or wage cuts, and some even stopped receiving wages altogether, leading to more than half a year of unemployment. Many luxurious office buildings are also empty, with some closed down entirely. Those who moved out have moved out. Many people sit in Starbucks and McDonald's, pretending to work, as the future remains full of uncertainties. A video shows that under a bridge tunnel in Guangdong, many homeless young people are sleeping. There are also young people sleeping on the roadside with quilts. A young woman placed a small basin in front of her, seemingly begging for food. It is heartbreaking to watch. Another video shows that in the central area of Xi'an High-Tech Development Zone in Shaanxi Province, there are almost no pedestrians on the streets, and nearly all the shops are closed. A woman sighed. This was once the most prosperous street, and almost every shop is now shut down. Iron locks hang on the doors one after another, with no trace of the past glory. It's terrifying. The street shown in another man's video also had most of its shops closed. He commented that opening a physical store this year is too difficult, especially a restaurant. The investment is in the hundreds of thousands or millions, and many plan to earn money to marry off their sons. In the current environment, it's a blessing if your wife doesn't leave you. There is a crying wave of unemployment on Chinese social media platforms, Radio Free Asia reported that on social platforms such as Douyin, Kuaishou, and Xiaohongshu in mainland China, many users shared their experiences. Some cried about the hardships of life, some complained about workplace injustice, and some expressed helplessness and anger. This year, there are 11.7 million college graduates in China. According to many people, the actual employment rate of college students this year is about 50%, which is lower than last year. Many companies have started laying off older employees. China's top technology companies, Alibaba and Tencent, have carried out large-scale layoffs. Alibaba laid off 1,469 people in the first quarter and another 6,729 in the second quarter, bringing total layoffs to over 20,000. Tencent has also been cutting jobs and has reduced its workforce by about 10%. Kai Shenkun, a senior financial commentator, told Radio Free Asia that China's current unemployment problem has not yet reached its worst point. I think the unemployment problem will become more and more serious. Now, on platforms such as Douyin, Kuaishou, and Xiaohongshu, many people are crying and complaining. Of course, some are trying to gain traffic, but a large number of people are genuinely reflecting the current situation. This is a basic reflection of China's unemployment situation. Kai Shenkun believes that massive unemployment not only reflects the current plight of China's labor market but also reveals society's concern and worry about unemployment. He said that now is not the time for the government to invest money to stimulate the economy and save enterprises. Enterprises are unwilling to invest now, and there are no better investment channels. How can private enterprises talk about development? China's aviation industry faces wage arrears and disguised layoffs. Employees struggle to make a living. Recently, China Xingfu Airlines has long been in arrears of wages, with pilots relying on food delivery to make a living, attracting attention. Industry insiders revealed that the Sino-US trade war and three years of epidemic lockdowns have hit China's aviation industry hard, and the international route business has not improved so far. Recently, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced the expansion of the visa-free policy, but it has not been effective. Xi'an's local aviation company Xingfu Airlines was recently exposed for having long-term arrears in wages and social security, attracting public attention. The company's pilots revealed that their wages had been in arrears for three years, forcing many employees to make a living by delivering food, driving for Didi, or setting up stalls. One pilot said he has been delivering food for a year and a half. An Air China employee using the pseudonym Chen Fan revealed that the Sino-US trade war and three years of epidemic lockdowns hit China's aviation transportation industry hard. Even after easing epidemic prevention measures, international route business has yet to improve. The losses of China's three major airlines, Air China, China Eastern Airlines, and China Southern Airlines, are covered by the government. The fourth largest airline, HNA, has laid off employees in disguise, forcing many to resign. Air China employee Chen Fan, pseudonym, no matter the size of the airline, all are in a loss-making state. Many airlines still cannot pay wages, but this has not been reported. Airline employees are having a very difficult time. They don't want to compensate for layoffs. Instead, they use particularly bad methods to find faults and exclude people, forcing them to leave voluntarily. Chen Fan also mentioned that the CCP spreads xenophobia and diverts attention to maintain regime stability. This year, many Japanese and Americans were attacked in China, including the unfortunate death of a 10-year-old Japanese boy in Shenzhen, which has made foreigners feel resentful. Although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently announced an expansion of the visa-free policy, it has not been effective. Air China employee, pseudonym, international passenger transport is basically at about 12% of its level before the trade war and the epidemic. Visa exemptions have been relaxed for many countries, but no one is willing to come. This is because the trade war began and the international community cannot accept what happened during the epidemic. They all think it is unreasonable. The mainland is quite scary. Mr. Hua, an employee of a Chinese airline, advised young people not to choose flight attendant majors. At the end of October this year, more than 5,000 people participated in interviews at the headquarters of China Eastern Airlines, but only around 300 were recruited, resulting in an extremely low admission rate. Mr. Hua, an employee of a Chinese airline, there are more than 100 colleges and universities across the country offering flight attendant majors, including aviation services, with more than 180,000 graduates each year. The problem is that the entire civil aviation system only needs at most 10,000 people annually and about 7,000 people at least. Civil aviation has been losing so much money. Who knows if it will collapse? In fact, all companies have tightened their manpower. The worst off people now are not those who have not received education, but those who cannot find a job after graduating from college. I found a problem at a class reunion today. There are six people in a dormitory, four of whom cannot find a job. Later, I found out that the other two are delivery men. I worked hard to get into college and studied for four years. Isn't the purpose of going to college to find a good job? As a result, after four years of college, I can't find a job at all. To be honest, I actually regret going to college a little bit. If I hadn't gone to college, I would earn 3,500 yuan a month as a waiter with food and accommodation. But what happened to me after four years of college? I can't even find a job that pays 4,000 yuan. In recent years, China's economy has been sluggish and unemployed people are everywhere. However, there are a large number of college graduates in the mainland every year, and the problem of unemployment after graduation is difficult to alleviate. Even in Shenzhen, it is difficult to find a job. Some college graduates have finally found a job, but after deducting necessary expenses, the remaining money is simply not enough to maintain a minimum living. Today, we will talk about related topics. Recently, a female law graduate in China cried that her monthly salary was 2,500 yuan and 1,800 yuan would be deducted for Social Security, leaving only 700 yuan, which is equivalent to a daily salary of only a little more than 30 yuan. She explained, why do you have to pay Social Security? Because you must have a record of paying Social Security to get a trainee lawyer certificate. If you don't pay Social Security, you can't become a trainee lawyer and you can't become a professional lawyer. My boss told me that my Social Security is deducted from my salary. The original salary of 2,500 yuan after deducting 1,800 yuan for Social Security leaves only 700 yuan. I work 22 days a month, which means that my daily salary is only a little more than 30 yuan. Why do I have to pay for insurance? Because if you want to get a trainee lawyer certificate, you must have a record of paying Social Security. If you don't pay Social Security, you can't become a trainee lawyer. If you can't become a trainee lawyer, you can't become a professional lawyer. I spend 6 yuan to take the subway every day to go to work and it costs 12 yuan to go back and forth. I have to eat and I pay to go to work every day. The woman said that law students must have experience to be a company's legal affairs and the competition for civil service examinations is also very fierce. Only graduate students can become judges and prosecutors. She cried and said, law students nowadays are so pitiful. I still rely on the money I earned as a tutor and the money my grandparents gave me. Otherwise, how can I survive? I'd rather not survive. I don't have a penny and I have to work every day to pay for it. This video resonated with mainland netizens. Some said, we have all experienced what you have experienced. Just hold on. It will be fine if you hold on. Don't cry, kid. You will get used to it slowly. Everyone is a cow or a horse. There is a joke on the internet that it is not easy for a boss to recruit a driver with a monthly salary of 2,000 to 3,000 yuan. But if you wanna recruit a trainee lawyer with a monthly salary of 2,000 to 3,000 yuan and let him work for you, write materials and be your driver, then you will definitely have a lot of applicants. This female blogger is a lawyer. She thinks it is more difficult for law students to find jobs this year than in previous years. I think it is more difficult for law students graduating this year because I found in the lawyer group that the recruitment of intern lawyers and paralegals has decreased, which is related to the lawyer's business volume. In the economic winter, the lawyer's business volume will also decrease and be affected. So naturally, the demand for paralegals and intern lawyers will also decrease. Even companies wanna lay off employees and the lawyer industry is the same. It's not that we don't work hard. On the contrary, I think we work very hard. How bad is the employment situation for law? As the best major in liberal arts, its employment is very representative. If the employment of this good major is not satisfactory, then where is the way out for other liberal arts majors? Yesterday, I found seven undergraduate law students from Guangxi University and learned about their and their class's employment situation, which is much worse than I expected. First of all, there is the issue of the employment rate. Many of their classmates have not found a job yet. Including the classmates I interviewed, several of them have not found a job. They roughly estimated that the employment rate of their major is only 50% at most, which means that at least half of the students are still unemployed. Among the employed people, about 20% can pass the civil service exam. Everyone should know the status of law in the civil service exam. It is the largest major in the civil service exam. There are the most positions, the best departments, and the least competition. Under such circumstances, only 20% of the people pass the civil service exam every year. Among the students who pass the civil service exam, most of them are civil servants in fourth and fifth tier cities or in some county towns. In better cities like Nanning, Guilin, and Liuzhou in Guangxi, the proportion is not very high because these places are also very competitive. The blogger said that there is another destination for law graduates, which is to work as lawyers in law firms. However, very few people go to law firms. Why? Because they have to pass the bar exam and the pass rate of the bar exam is very low. Even if a powerful relative helps the graduate enter a law firm, he will not make any money in the first five years of working in the law firm. It is good enough if the monthly salary can support himself. And some people can't even support themselves. He suggested that if you wanna be a lawyer, it is better to go to cities and developed provinces because the more developed the region, the more lawsuits there are, and the more people hire lawyers to fight lawsuits. The woman said that the employment rate of law graduates in her university is the lowest. I am a fresh graduate this year, majoring in law. I found a problem. The counselor told me that our law school's employment rate this year is the lowest, the lowest in the whole school. I was thinking about what happened. Did all the law majors take the civil service exam? Do you have to wait until you have taken the national exam, the provincial exam, and various exams before you know whether you have landed or not, and then look for a job? Who is studying law? Don't study it. The employment rate is the lowest. The employment rate of law has been the lowest for 10 consecutive years, and it is actually called the best major in liberal arts by many people. Not only is it difficult for law students to find jobs, the overall economic environment in China is deteriorating, and the same is true in Shenzhen. Many companies have closed down, and many people have lost their jobs. Blogger Mr. Jiang said that there are also many empty shops in Shenzhen with transfer notices. In the area of Huarun Vanguard Food Street in Longhua, a whole row of empty shops are written for transfer. Such a good location is idle, and no one rents it. Many small companies in Shenzhen have closed down, and large companies are also cutting salaries and laying off employees. The most saturated now may be food delivery men and online car-hailing drivers. There are now more wolves than meat. After most people are laid off, they will choose to work as food delivery men, couriers, or online car-hailing drivers to make a transition. Moreover, Shenzhen is a city with high consumption. An ordinary salary for an adult can no longer support a family with children, so most men and women work, and both men and women, young and old, work outside. It is unbelievable to what extent companies are laying off employees now. One person gets one salary, but he has to do the work of two to three people. He wants to quit and is under great pressure, but he has to earn this wasteful job because he doesn't know if he can find a better job in the future after quitting. There is no way but to force yourself to become a tool man. Is it the same in your place? A meal for four yuan, and this is in Guangzhou, a first-tier city, a globally recognized first-tier city. Is there any other country in the world as happy and content as ours? After eating, if I want to smoke, I smoke. If I want to drink, I drink. I was in Singapore for three weeks. Even eating McDonald's there costs over 100 yuan, and they don't even let you smoke. Honestly, just one trip abroad will make you love your country more. I'm being real here. I'm someone who matches my words with actions. Look at me. I'm not saying this for views. In my private friend group, I praise my country every single day. Truly, we've surpassed other countries. Our motherland is just too strong. I'm about to come up with another word just to praise it more. But if a place offers food so cheap it's shocking, that's not necessarily a good thing. Think about it. What does a 4 yuan lunchbox really mean? In the largest county in the country, Linquan County, Anhui, not only do they have egg fried rice for 3 yuan a portion, they also have full lunchboxes for 5 yuan. How much? 5 yuan. Look here, another egg fried rice for 5 yuan. Just to show you. Is 5 yuan worth it for a box of egg fried rice? Right now, 4 yuan lunchboxes are blowing up in Harbin. And yet people still talk about consumption upgrade? If you're not foolish, you must be wicked. What's behind the explosion in popularity of 4 yuan lunchboxes? A decline in consumption. People genuinely can't afford to spend anymore. The fact that 4 yuan lunchboxes are selling well in Harbin shows that purchasing power there has dropped. At the same time, it proves there's a huge demand for ultra low-priced meals. I saw the news. The 4 yuan lunchbox comes with four dishes. Let me show you what they are. Sweet and sour crispy pork, mushrooms, three kinds of stir-fried vegetables, and scrambled eggs with tomatoes. That lunchbox, 4 yuan for four dishes. Scoot me one, it's actually very reasonable. Okay, potatoes with dried tofu, vermicelli, pickled vegetables, scrambled eggs with tomatoes. The eggs are a bit small. A portion like that for just 4 yuan? Brothers, four dishes in a 4 yuan lunchbox. I was stunned just hearing the vendor yell it out. Never mind what's in it, you'll definitely be full. The rice portion is just right too. Because right now, China's entering a period of low-quality economic growth. Consumption is down. People are cutting back on unnecessary spending. Rent alone is already a heavy burden. As long as you're full, that's enough. We're not even talking about fast food or gourmet meals anymore. Just being full is the goal now. China's economy is declining rapidly. People's incomes are falling, and consumer habits are changing. Many are budgeting down to the last cent. Some even afraid to spend any money at all. Right now, 4 to 5 yuan lunchboxes are becoming widespread in many cities. The last time 5 yuan lunchboxes were this popular in China was around the 1990s. One business owner revealed that he's worked in the wholesale and retail food industry for over half his life. And this year is the worst for business. Too many people are unemployed, have no income, and are cutting back on spending. Tightening their belts, consuming less, and simplifying meals have become the new consumer habits of the Chinese. Competition in the business world is fiercer than ever. A netizen posted a video saying, spending has downgraded, haircuts cost only 6 yuan now. The economy has regressed. It feels like we've returned to prices from 20 years ago. I went up to the second floor and was stunned. Look at this. The entire shopping mall is nearly shut down. About 90% of the stores have closed. Running a brick and mortar shop this year is truly too difficult. People are now bringing their own steamed buns to restaurants and asking for free soup. Has spending really dropped this low? Today, a man in his 40s came in, sat down without ordering, and took out his buns. I noticed, but let it slide since we weren't busy. Later, he asked for a bowl of noodle soup because his buns were too dry. I gave him one. Then he grabbed a handful of cilantro and reached for chopped green onions. I stopped him. Those cost money too. He called me stingy. I was upset, but my husband told me to let it go. The man finished the soup and left. I never thought things would get this bad. A 40-year-old unemployed man in Shanghai posted a video recalling how he used to buy a 50-yuan dessert from Godiva, never once purchasing cheap bubble tea. But now, after losing his job, he had to cut back and bought a 3-yuan egg milk tea instead. Running a business is seriously tough now. Whole commercial streets are shut down. This is happening everywhere. You can barely see a single person, maybe just one or two people walking by. Everyone, today I'll show you just how hard the food and beverage industry is struggling. The seafood plaza, completely shut down. In an entire street, only one restaurant has a single table of customers. And the place is actually nicely decorated. Just imagine the rent and utility bills each month. A restaurant that's been around for 16 years can't even get one table filled now. The whole street is deserted. Shops across the way are barely hanging on, but most are shut down and have taken down their signs. Some say this is just the fate of shop owners, but even street vendors aren't doing any better. Night markets can't even operate anymore. Many people have stopped setting up stalls altogether. Take a look at this. It's a market area in the new district. Not a single person in sight. This used to be a place with over a million different products. Now, you can literally drive your car right through it. Can you believe it? The economy is in a deep recession. Just look at all these empty seats. Even taking the high-speed train has become a luxury now. Each trip costs 200 to 300 yuan, so people are choosing to drive instead. See that? It's practically empty. A true sign of a major downturn. No wonder the high-speed rail says it's operating at a loss. Look around. There are hardly any passengers. China's economy is declining, with many people facing pay cuts or layoffs, and consumer spending is dropping. A wave of business closures is sweeping across the country. It's very bad. Worse than any time before. Many businesses and factories are shutting down, jobs are scarce, and wage arrears have become common. The average lifespan of a restaurant is now just a few months. It's the same all over the country. Every industry is struggling. Even working as an independent professional, you can feel it. Doing business is extremely difficult. Income has dropped by more than 60%, and people simply don't have money in hand, so they're afraid to spend. As a gauge of China's consumer sentiment, Shanghai's economy this year feels even more gloomy than usual. During the May 1st holiday, known as the Golden Week in China, a famous blogger noted that people in Shanghai only visited tourist spots to take photos, but didn't spend any money at all. Take a look at the historic commercial area of Chenghuangmiao, City God Temple. Even this place is now in a miserable state. The shops are mostly empty, and hardly any stores remain open. Who's still selling this stuff? This used to be Chenghuangmiao, a vibrant market for small goods, stationary, antiques. Now this place is heavily impacted by the downturn in brick-and-mortar retail. Shanghai's population is visibly shrinking. Fewer cars, fewer people on the streets, emptier restaurants, and fewer social gatherings. Even TV shows feature fewer mommies, young ladies, princesses, and rich heirs. Where have they gone? They've run out of money. While expenses remain, earning has become harder. The recession is unmistakable, more obvious than ever. Shanghai, once the magical city, still holds its charm, but something has clearly changed. How bad has life really become? Just one video tells the story. At the foot of Shanghai's iconic Oriental Pearl Tower, next to the luxury Tangcheng Yi Pin complex, half the mall's shops are shuttered. Even across the street, in areas where apartments cost 300,000 yuan per square meter, malls are closing. The wealthiest are cutting back. In Shanghai, China's most developed city, official data backs this up. Shanghai's retail sales dropped 1.1% year-on-year in Q1, with a sharp 14.1% fall in March alone. Analysts warn when spending drops in cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, the country's consumption barometers, the rest of China is likely faring worse.