时事关注：揭秘中国用工荒

 　　Various domestic media reports put the labor¹ supply gap at around a million people in Guangzhou and neighboring cities such as Dongguan, legendary² centers of China's export boom in the past three decades. Numerous assembly lines and construction sites are sitting idle while anxious employers have raised salaries by more than 30% but still can't attract enough applicants³.

　　多家国内媒体报道称，广州及邻近的东莞等城市的农民工缺口大约在100万人，这些地方在过去三十年中一直号称中国出口热潮的中心所在。无数生产线闲置、建筑工地停工，焦急不已的用工方已将工资提高了30%以上，却仍然无法吸引足够的求职者。

　　So where have all the theoretically jobless peasants gone?

　　那么，那些理论上没有工作的农民都去哪儿了?

　　Structural⁴ unemployment - a mismatch between the skills workers have and those sought by employers - doesn't fully⁵ explain the phenomenon. To answer the question, one needs to consider a combination of factors that symbolize⁶ the changing landscape of China's labor force and modern society in general.

　　结构性失业──即劳动者技能与用工方要求不匹配──并不能完全解释这种现象。要回答这个问题，就得考虑多种因素，它们代表了不断变化的中国劳动力状况以及整体上的现代社会。

　　Firstly, there is indeed a structural problem here and it's twofold: On the one hand, many of the outstanding job vacancies⁷ are due to a lack of skilled workers as segments of China's export industry crawl up the value chain; but on the other hand, some factories complain that lots of the new-generation migrant workers aren't interested in tough basic jobs like construction any more.

　　首先，结构性问题确实存在，而且它是双重的：一方面，很多尚未填补的职位空缺缘于中国出口行业在价值链中攀升的过程中技术工人的缺乏;另一方面，一些工厂抱怨很多新生代农民工不再有兴趣从事建筑等艰苦的基础性工作。

　　The lack of interest in such low-paying, physically⁸ demanding work partly stems from the second factor - the growing income at home for these farmers. Much to its credit, the Chinese government has consistently put developing agriculture and feeding the rural population (which measured 727.5 million in 2007) as its top priority over the years. An incessant¹⁰ stream of favorable policies, such as scrapping¹¹ burdensome taxes and forceful market intervention¹², have increased rural incomes to the extent that farming is becoming more rewarding than cleaning skyscraper¹³ windows in some places.

　　农民工对于这类低薪重体力工作缺乏兴趣一部分又是源自第二个因素──他们在家乡的收入有所增长。值得称许的是，中国政府多年来一直将发展农业、解决农村人口温饱问题(2007年农村人口达7.275亿)作为首要工作重点。取消农业税、加大市场干预等源源不断的惠农政策令农村收入增加，在一些地方，务农已经比清洁摩天大楼窗户赚得更多了。

　　China's little-noticed reform to allow large state enterprises to rent farmland from peasants in order to modernize¹⁴ farming and boost productivity has started reaping fruits and also created a burgeoning¹⁵ group of idle farmers who can afford to live on their handsome rental¹⁶ income.

　　中国进行了一项不引人注目的改革，允许大型国有企业从农民手中租赁土地，以实现农业现代化、提高生产率，这项改革已经开始取得成果，也催生了一批新兴的闲散农民，他们单靠出租土地的收入就足以维持生活了。

　　Thirdly, the current labor shortage in affluent¹⁷ coastal¹⁸ regions such as the Yangtze and Pearl River deltas¹⁹ is partly due to the construction boom and fast economic growth in second-tier inland cities such as Chongqing, Wuhan and Nanchang. Many migrant workers prefer these places because salaries are in some cases almost on par⁹ with Shanghai's and it's simply closer to home.

　　第三，长三角和珠三角等富裕沿海地区当前用工荒的部分原因在于，重庆、武汉、南昌等二线内陆城市的建筑热和快速经济增长。许多农民工更愿意去这些地方，因为那儿的薪水有时差不多向上海看齐，而且离家更近。

　　Lastly, a fairly qualitative²⁰ but nonetheless significant observation is that just like in China's urban areas, the young generation of the rural population seems to have taken on a different world view. While their parents - migrant workers in their late 40s or early 50s - are gradually returning home and fading from the scene, their children who have been raised in relatively²¹ good conditions, are under much less pressure to support themselves or their (smaller) families.

　　最后，还有一个决定性的重要现象是，跟中国城市地区一样，农村地区的年轻一代似乎也有着不同的世界观。在这一代人的父母──50岁上下的一代农民工──逐渐回到家乡，淡出人们的视线时，在相对较好的条件下长大的年轻一代养活自己或支撑(规模更小的)家庭的压力要小得多。

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

3 applicants   

申请人，求职人( applicant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were over 500 applicants for the job. 有500多人申请这份工作。
• He was impressed by the high calibre of applicants for the job. 求职人员出色的能力给他留下了深刻印象。

4 structural   

adj.构造的，组织的，建筑（用）的

参考例句：

• The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

5 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

6 symbolize   

vt.作为...的象征，用符号代表

参考例句：

• Easter eggs symbolize the renewal of life.复活蛋象征新生。
• Dolphins symbolize the breath of life.海豚象征着生命的气息。

7 vacancies   

n.空房间( vacancy的名词复数 )；空虚；空白；空缺

参考例句：

• job vacancies 职位空缺
• The sign outside the motel said \"No Vacancies\". 汽车旅馆外的招牌显示“客满”。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

9 par   

n.标准，票面价值，平均数量；adj.票面的，平常的，标准的

参考例句：

• Sales of nylon have been below par in recent years.近年来尼龙织品的销售额一直不及以往。
• I don't think his ability is on a par with yours.我认为他的能力不能与你的能力相媲美。

10 incessant   

adj.不停的，连续的

参考例句：

• We have had incessant snowfall since yesterday afternoon.从昨天下午开始就持续不断地下雪。
• She is tired of his incessant demands for affection.她厌倦了他对感情的不断索取。

11 scrapping   

刮，切除坯体余泥

参考例句：

• He was always scrapping at school. 他在学校总打架。
• These two dogs are always scrapping. 这两条狗总是打架。

12 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

13 skyscraper   

n.摩天大楼

参考例句：

• The skyscraper towers into the clouds.那幢摩天大楼高耸入云。
• The skyscraper was wrapped in fog.摩天楼为雾所笼罩。

14 modernize   

vt.使现代化，使适应现代的需要

参考例句：

• It was their manifest failure to modernize the country's industries.他们使国家进行工业现代化，明显失败了。
• There is a pressing need to modernise our electoral system.我们的选举制度迫切需要现代化。

15 burgeoning   

adj.迅速成长的，迅速发展的v.发芽，抽枝( burgeon的现在分词 )；迅速发展；发（芽），抽（枝）

参考例句：

• Our company's business is burgeoning now. 我们公司的业务现在发展很迅速。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• These efforts were insufficient to contain the burgeoning crisis. 这些努力不足以抑制迅速扩散的危机。 来自辞典例句

16 rental   

n.租赁，出租，出租业

参考例句：

• The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。
• We can organise car rental from Chicago O'Hare Airport.我们可以安排提供从芝加哥奥黑尔机场出发的租车服务。

17 affluent   

adj.富裕的，富有的，丰富的，富饶的

参考例句：

• He hails from an affluent background.他出身于一个富有的家庭。
• His parents were very affluent.他的父母很富裕。

18 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

19 deltas   

希腊字母表中第四个字母( delta的名词复数 )； （河口的）三角洲

参考例句：

• Tidal channels, deltas, and washover fans are characteristically associated with offshore bars. 潮汐水道、三角洲和冲刷扇典型地与滨外砂洲伴生在一起。
• I know many of the early civilizations prospered on deltas. 我知道很多古老的文明都是在三角洲上蓬勃发展起来的。

20 qualitative   

adj.性质上的，质的，定性的

参考例句：

• There are qualitative differences in the way children and adults think.孩子和成年人的思维方式有质的不同。
• Arms races have a quantitative and a qualitative aspects.军备竞赛具有数量和质量两个方面。

21 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。