Over Half of Workers Have Experienced Wage Arrears

    The "Report" shows that the infringement of migrant workers' rights and interests is relatively serious: over half of the respondents have experienced wage or overtime pay arrears, 28.77% have not enjoyed full social insurance contributions, 21.03% have suffered work injuries but failed to receive timely compensation, and 18.09% have been treated differently due to their identity.

    When safeguarding their rights, over half of the respondents chose judicial institutions (labor mediation, arbitration and legal litigation) and government departments (administrative organs in their hometowns and places of work), while very few chose the media, non-governmental organizations or Communist Youth League organizations at various levels for help.

    In this regard, Li Baoyuan, head of the report and director of the Humanistic Development and Management Research Center at Beijing Normal University, said this shows that various forces have not yet formed a synergy in solving the problem of infringed rights and interests of migrant workers, and systematic integration is urgently needed.

    Over 60% of Construction Workers Unwilling to Stay in Cities

    In this ecological survey of migrant workers, the survey team organized the "Survival Conditions Survey of Ten Thousand Construction Workers Across a Thousand Miles" through the Beijing Little Bird Migrant Worker Hotline, with samples from nine cities including Beijing, Shenzhen and Shenyang.

    The survey shows that construction workers, as a high-risk vulnerable occupational group, are often employed through legal or illegal labor dispatch; nearly two-thirds of construction workers have not signed labor contracts, over 70% have not received regular physical examinations, 75% have no days off, and most work 10-12 hours a day; nearly half of construction workers are paid annually, and wage arrears are common.

    The "Report" also shows that over 60% of construction workers do not plan to develop in cities long-term; among them, construction workers with a monthly income of 2,000-3,000 yuan have the largest proportion willing to stay in cities long-term, accounting for 37.4%; for other slightly higher-income groups, their willingness to stay in cities is instead lower, at about 27%.

    In this regard, Wei Wei, head of the Little Bird Migrant Worker Hotline, analyzed that this may be because low-income groups have just started their working careers and are full of expectations and aspirations for income improvement and future life. As their working careers lengthen and they experience the hardships of city life, their desire to stay in cities long-term instead decreases somewhat.

    Public Welfare Organizations Caught in Staffing Dilemma

    The "Report" also surveyed non-governmental public welfare organizations serving migrant workers.

    The "Report" shows that most non-governmental public welfare organizations serving migrant workers have problems in operation and management. This is mainly due to illegal status caused by the lack of relevant legal norms, shortage of operating funds, poor internal management and scarcity of volunteers, which have plunged many organizations into development difficulties.

    To this end, the "Report" recommends that, on the basis of the government promptly improving relevant laws, regulations and policies, public welfare organizations themselves should leverage social forces from all sides to solve funding problems through multiple channels, and draw on advanced foreign experience to continuously improve volunteer management.