What the 2020 Beijing Survey Reveals About New‑Generation Migrant Workers

Background

On August 16, 2021, the National Bureau of Statistics Beijing Survey Team released the "2020 Beijing Monitoring Report on New‑Generation Migrant Workers". The survey aimed to understand the work and living needs of non‑agricultural migrant workers in the city.

Key Findings

Overall Demographic Profile

New‑generation migrant workers (born after the 1980s, aged 16+ and employed outside their hometown) account for 50.1% of the migrant labor force.

Male share increased to 66.3%, 4.6 percentage points higher than the previous year; the gender gap widened to 32.5 percentage points.

Age distribution: 31‑40 years old constitute 57.9% (up 3.2 pp), 21‑30 years old 39.9% (down 2.6 pp), 16‑20 years old 2.2% (down 0.6 pp). Average age 31.4 years.

Education: 21.2% hold a bachelor’s degree or higher (up 7.9 pp); 20.0% bachelor’s, 1.2% postgraduate.

Origin: mainly from surrounding provinces, especially Hebei (37.3%, +3.5 pp) and Henan (12.3%, –3.3 pp).

Employment Situation

Employment remains concentrated in labor‑intensive industries.

Top five employing sectors (together 67.2%): resident services, repair & other services; manufacturing; construction; wholesale & retail; accommodation & catering.

Share in information transmission, software and IT services rose to 7.9%, an increase of 3.7 pp, the largest sectoral growth.

Income Levels

Average monthly income: ¥6,214, up ¥364 (6.2%) from the previous year.

66.5% earn ¥5,000 or more, 8.6 pp higher.

Income varies sharply by industry; highest average in information transmission, software & IT services (¥10,571), lowest in resident services, repair & other services (¥5,195).

Income gaps widened between high‑ and low‑income groups. Workers earning ≥¥5,000 saw average income rise to ¥7,507 (+2.8 pp); those earning ¥4,000‑5,000 fell to ¥4,175 (‑3.4 pp); those earning <¥4,000 rose to ¥3,064 (+1.1 pp).

Self‑employed workers earn ¥6,716 on average, ¥568 more than wage workers, and work longer (6.5 days/week, 9.5 hours/day).

Living Conditions

Average household consumption fell to ¥42,395, a 4.1% decrease.

Top three expense categories: food & tobacco & alcohol (¥14,032), housing (¥10,861), clothing & daily goods (¥5,141), together 70.8% of total consumption.

Housing: private rented rooms remain dominant (60.5%, down 3.2 pp); employer‑provided housing increased to 33.1% (+4.7 pp).

Satisfaction with current housing rose to 66.5% (up 3.0 pp); 18.6% very satisfied.

Leisure: internet use became the primary pastime (60.1%, +4.7 pp). Participation in learning, reading, or training declined (3.8% and 7.6% respectively).

Characteristics of “Post‑90s” Migrant Workers

These workers (born after 1990) show distinct patterns.

Industry distribution differs slightly; they are more represented in information transmission, software & IT services (11.6%, +3.7 pp) and less in wholesale & retail (5.8%, –6.3 pp) compared with the broader group.

Average monthly income ¥6,424, ¥210 higher than the overall average; 68.4% earn ≥¥5,000.

Self‑employment is low (3.7%) versus 7.9% in the overall group.

Household consumption ¥42,009, ¥386 lower; higher shares on clothing (14.0%) and cultural‑entertainment (5.9%). Lower shares on housing (23.9%) and transport/communication (9.2%).

Leisure time: still dominated by internet, rest, and friends, but “post‑90s” workers allocate more time to rest (34.5%, +5.6 pp) and self‑improvement activities (27.5%, +5.7 pp for sports/culture, +11.8 pp for training/reading).

Definition

New‑generation migrant workers are individuals born after the 1980s, aged 16 or older, holding agricultural household registration, and working outside their hometown in non‑agricultural jobs.