Photo Essay: "My Hourly Wage"

As the Chinese economy continues to recover from the long pandemic (and post-pandemic) slowdown, wages in many industries remain stagnant, and economic- and job-related insecurity runs high. This is particularly true for workers who occupy a more precarious position in the economic structure: migrant workers, temporary workers, and hourly-wage workers. A recent report by Yang Shengli, Liu Jinpan, and Wang Haiyan of Hebei University’s School of Economics forecast that unemployment among China’s migrant workers will peak in 2027, which could have enormous implications for labor unrest, social stability, population movement, and economic well-being in China.

At the same time, China is experiencing both deflationary and inflationary pressures, albeit in different areas of the consumer economy. The recent online popularity of the term “winner-take-all” (通杀, tōngshā) illustrates the effects of both inflation and deflation on working-class pocketbooks. The term was originally used to describe games of chance in which the banker, house, or a single player executes a “massacre” of all the other players, i.e. impoverishing all of the other players by taking their money. More recently, it has been used to describe a situation in which prices for food and other essentials are rising, while the prices of luxury goods and services—far beyond the reach of working-class or middle-class workers anyway—are falling. The rich are reaping the benefits of deflation and getting richer, while the poor are grappling with inflation for essential goods (including utilities) and getting poorer.

“My Hourly Wage,” a recent photo essay from Chinese-language media outlet Why Not (歪脑, wāinǎo), illustrates this phenomenon in vivid detail by juxtaposing photos of various people in their work environments with details on their hourly wage and an illustration of the purchasing power of that hourly wage. For each job, the occupational hazards are also listed: among these are long periods spent outside, excessive overtime, exposure to dangerous chemicals or particulates, and the risk of traffic accidents:

Inside a long, darkened factory building, a man in a hard hat uses a long metal pole to stoke a fire. — Foundry worker, northern China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Foundry Worker

Occupational hazards: thermal radiation, harmful gases, particulate inhalation, risk of burns, high-intensity physical labor

Hourly wage: 25 yuan ($3.46 U.S. dollars) per hour, the cost of five kilograms of rice

A photo of a bag of white rice against a black background. — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

A young fisherman dressed in warm clothes and a rubber apron, sleeve protectors, and gloves, sits on a pile of fishing nets on the side of a trawler out at sea. — Offshore fishery worker, eastern China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Offshore fishery worker

Occupational hazards: long hours outdoors, high-intensity physical labor, overtime work, high humidity, risk of falling into the sea

Hourly wage: 9 yuan ($1.25), the cost of a pair of padded insoles

A white pair of padded insoles. — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

Surrounded by steam, a man in a khaki sweatshirt pours something from a bright yellow plastic bucket. — Tofu-maker, western China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Tofu-maker

Occupational hazards: high humidity environment, risk of burns

Hourly wage: 12 yuan ($1.67), the cost of 1.2 kg (2.65 lbs) of free-range eggs

A plastic bag filled with brown eggs. — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

A slim young man in khaki clothes and a red hard hat looks down from a very high scaffolding: from his vantage point, the ten- and -twenty story buildings below him look quite small. — Exterior wall cleaner for residential buildings, northern China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Exterior wall cleaner for residential buildings

Occupational hazards: long hours outdoors, risk of falling, particulate inhalation, overtime work

Hourly wage: 32 yuan ($4.43), the cost of 1 kg (2.2 lbs) of pork ribs

pork ribs in a white ceramic bowl against a black backdrop — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

A worker wears a black hard hat, clear goggles, and a full respirator. — Metal grinder, northern China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Metal grinder

Occupational hazards: particulate inhalation, toxic gas inhalation, risk of falling, exposure to thermal radiation, risk of electrocution

Hourly wage: 28 yuan ($3.87), the cost of three bundles of egg noodles

Three cylindrical packages of egg noodles with labels in red, black, and white. — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

A woman wearing a bright green apron and white cotton working gloves pulls an enormous load of something encased in woven bags on a metal trolley behind her. — Trolley-puller, southwestern China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Trolley-puller

Occupational hazards: long hours outdoors, high-intensity physical labor, risk of traffic accidents

Hourly wage: 12 yuan ($1.66), the cost of eight sanitary pads

Eight folded sanitary pads, viewed from the side, in red, pink, and light blue wrappers — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

A worker in black, paint-splattered clothes, a hard hat, and a respirator stands on a scaffold to apply red paint to a metal wall. — Painter, northern China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Painter

Occupational hazards: long hours outdoors, risk of falling, toxic gas inhalation, dust inhalation, overtime work

Hourly wage: 40 yuan ($5.54), the cost of one box of 24 sustained-release pain-relief capsules

Two packets of pain reliever, each containing 12 light- and dark-blue capsules. — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

An elderly woman in a padded lavender jacket and gray cap sits on a low stool, chin cradled in her hand, as she displays her wares, which include tissue packets and other paper products. — Street vendor, southwestern China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Street vendor

Occupational hazards: long hours outdoors

Hourly wage: 5 yuan ($.70), cost of a jianbing (savory crepe)

A crepe made with eggs and garnished with black sesame seeds in a plastic baggie — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

Courier

Occupational hazards: long hours outdoors, overtime work, risk of traffic accidents

Hourly wage: 15 yuan ($2.08), the cost of five packets of instant noodles

Five bright-red packets of instant noodles against a black background. — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

Porter

Occupational hazards: long hours outdoors, high-intensity physical labor, risk of traffic accidents

Hourly wage: 9.5 yuan ($1.31), the cost of one bottle of Laoganma-brand chili-oil beancurd

A red, yellow, and black glass jar of Laoganma's iconic spicy beancurd — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

Sanitation worker

Occupational hazards: long periods outdoors, long periods of walking, risk of traffic accidents, particulate inhalation, overtime work

Hourly wage: 10 yuan ($1.38), the cost of a pack of 10 individually-packaged N95 masks

Ten white N95 masks, each wrapped in a clear plastic package, against a black backdrop — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

A bare-chested young man wearing army-green trousers and a bright yellow hard hat bends over a pile of dusty red bricks. — Brick recycler, northern China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Brick recycler

Occupational hazards: long periods outdoors, high-intensity physical labor, particulate inhalation, overtime work

Hourly wage: 18 yuan ($2.49), the cost of six packets of laundry soap

(source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

Parked in front of a small noodle stall, a driver wearing a helmet, padded blue jacket, blue jeans, and black leather boots leans back in the seat of his motorcycle and and relaxes. — Motorcycle-taxi driver, southwest China (source: Why Not / Shell Long)

Motorcycle-taxi driver

Occupational hazards: long periods outdoors, risk of traffic accidents

Hourly wage: 15 yuan ($2.08), the cost of five packets of moisturizing balm

(source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

Security guard

Occupational hazards: overtime work, long periods outdoors

Hourly wage: 13 yuan ($1.80), the cost of 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs) of assorted fresh vegetables

A head of cabbage, a bunch of chives, and a bitter melon against a black backdrop. — (source: Why Not / Bai Sensen)

[Chinese]

Photo Essay: “My Hourly Wage”

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