Shenzhen-based software developer Peter Li was laid off from a leading internet company last month – his first job since graduating from university – after failing to meet department performance targets.
He joins a growing group of young victims of China’s grim job market. While the 24-year-old expects to find another job eventually, Li said he might have to lower his expectations about pay, growth and work-life balance.
“I think the economy is indeed bad. My classmates who went on to pursue a master’s degree are finding it more difficult to find a job now than when they graduated with a bachelor’s,” said Li, who graduated in the summer of 2022.
“Back then, you could easily land a job at these internet companies. Now it’s difficult and the salary is not as attractive.”
A growing number of young Chinese are feeling similar discontent as rising unemployment pushes them into a tough choice – whether to accept a low-paying job, or to live on parents’ pensions.
Some say even though they can survive, they do not dare hope for a better future. Some have resorted to “lying flat” – slang for giving up on trying to be ambitious or productive – as a way of protesting against their unpleasant reality.
