Zhongshan Investigation Team of the National Bureau of Statistics recently conducted a special survey, which found that there are significant differences between the younger generation and the elder with respect to career choices and professional identity.

More and more young adults prefer to work in private companies. This group accounts for 43.9% of respondents. There were 15.3% of respondents who chose independent/flexible employment, and 10.8% who gave priority to government agencies, organizations and institutions, or other organizations.

Among the young labor force, people engaged in business and service sectors take up the highest proportion. The number of practitioners in the primary industry has decreased drastically, while those in the service industry have increased significantly.

The data shows that 35.7% of employed people out of those interviewed were engaged in internet-related work. Typical jobs in this sector include online car-hailing, online shopping, food delivery, designated driving, and customer service.

Many young respondents were reluctant to work in traditional industries for many reasons. For example, jobs in traditional industries were said to be boring and practitioners were unable to learn practical skills. Such jobs also feature unfavorable working environments, fixed daily schedules, low salary, long working hours, and low status. These disadvantages make it impossible for practitioners to obtain their due respect.

Most of the young adults interviewed were said to receive a salary of 3,000 to 8,000 per month. Half of these respondents have to work over 5 days per week, or work overtime on weekdays.

Some 60% of respondents were reluctant to work overtime. They would rather spend more time with their family, doing recreational activities, studying, or training.

Of the young adults interviewed, 70% were more concerned with salary and welfare benefits. These were followed by job stability, which accounted for 46.0%.