BEIJING, May 18, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Zhaopin Limited ("Zhaopin" or the "Company"), a leading career platform in China focused on matching talent with skills and opportunities through their career lifecycle, today released 2018 Research Report on the Living Status of White-collar Workers. The report found that the majority of white-collar workers in China were experiencing anxiety and loneliness.
Based on survey of nearly 20,000 white-collar workers in China, the report presents the status of their living situation, health condition, mentality and career expectations.
Highlights of living status for which-collar workers:
- About 45.1% of white-collar workers were renting apartments, and 22.2% bought their own condominiums with mortgages.
- For their daily commute, 55% of white-collar workers took public transportation, 17.7% drove private cars and 10.3% rode bicycles.
- Nearly 70% of white-collar workers believed they were healthy or very healthy, and 54.7% enjoyed good or very good sleep with no insomnia.
- About 52.9% of white-collar workers experienced feelings of loneliness in their daily lives. Having no companion or friends were the top reasons for feeling lonely.
- Anxiety has become part of the daily lives for white-collar workers. More than 90% of them felt anxiety often or occasionally. "Low salary" and "no clear career path" were the top causes for anxiety.
- Nearly 70% of white-collar workers were dissatisfied with their salaries, and believed that their current salaries were below their expectations and did not match their skills.
- For the next 12 months, 36.6% of white-collar workers would seek to change jobs and 17.3% hoped for a promotion with pay rise.
LIFE
About 45% of white-collar workers rent apartments
According to Zhaopin's survey, 45.1% of white-collar workers were renting apartments. The percentage was even higher in first-tier cities with 68.8% in Shenzhen and 58.6% in Beijing. Also 22.2% of white-collar workers bought their own condominiums with mortgages.
Living status of white-collar workers in 2018 |
|
Status |
Percentage |
Renting own apartment |
18.1% |
Renting apartment with friends |
16.0% |
Renting apartment with strangers |
11.0% |
Bought condo without mortgage |
6.6% |
Bought condo with mortgage |
22.2% |
Living with parents |
11.8% |
Living in company dorms |
11.2% |
Others |
3.1% |
About 70% of white-collar workers spent less than RMB20 for lunch on average each day, for a meal as simple as a lunch box, a bowl of noodles, or a sandwich. White-collar workers in finance and culture/media/entertainment/sports sectors normally spent more on lunch, as they had higher salaries and worked in downtown areas.
Average workday spending on lunch in 2018 |
|
Cost (RMB) |
Percentage |
Within 20 |
69.6% |
21 to 30 |
23.0% |
31 to 40 |
4.4% |
41 to 50 |
1.5% |
51 to 99 |
0.9% |
100 to 199 |
0.2% |
Over 200 |
0.3% |
For their daily commute, 55% of white-collar workers took public transportation, while 17.7% drove private cars and 10.3% rode bicycles.
Commute of white-collar workers in 2018 |
|
Method |
Percentage |
Public transportation |
55.0% |
Taxi |
4.8% |
Private car |
17.7% |
Bicycle |
10.3% |
Walking |
8.8% |
Others |
3.4% |
Confident in health and enjoying good sleep
Nearly 70% of white-collar workers believed they were healthy or very healthy, and 27.5% thought that they were not in healthy condition.
Health status of white-collar workers in 2018 |
|
Status |
Percentage |
Very healthy |
17.0% |
Healthy |
52.8% |
Unhealthy |
25.9% |
Very unhealthy |
1.6% |
Not clear |
2.6% |
Reasons for being unhealthy included an irregular work/rest schedule and often staying up late, according to 29.1 percent of workers, while 28.4% believed it was caused by lack of a proper workout.
Reasons for unhealthy conditions in 2018 |
|
Reason |
Percentage |
Irregular work and rest and often staying up late |
29.1% |
Lack of a workout |
28.4% |
Heavy work pressure with overtime and travel |
17.1% |
Unbearable pressure from work and life |
10.9% |
Unhealthy environment |
9.3% |
Congenital diseases |
1.3% |
Others |
4.0% |
About 54.7% of white-collar workers enjoyed good or very good sleep without any insomnia.
Sleep quality of white-collar workers in 2018 |
|
Quality |
Percentage |
Good with almost no insomnia |
40.6% |
Very good with no insomnia |
14.1% |
So-so |
28.7% |
Bad with occasional insomnia |
13.3% |
Very poor with insomnia |
3.3% |
WORK
Feeling lonely and anxious
With the fast pace of work and life, about 52.9% of white-collar workers experienced feelings of loneliness in their daily lives.
Loneliness status of white-collar workers in 2018 |
|
Status |
Percentage |
Yes |
52.9% |
No |
37.9% |
Can't tell |
9.3% |
Having no companion or friends were the top reasons for white-collar workers to feel lonely. The environment and mainstream culture also contributed to their loneliness.
Reasons for loneliness in 2018 |
|
Reason |
Percentage |
Living alone in big cities |
17.0% |
No companion |
19.2% |
No friends with same values |
17.6% |
Could not fit into environment |
15.1% |
Could not fit into mainstream culture |
8.0% |
Not clear |
17.3% |
Others |
5.7% |
Nearly 40% of white-collar workers believed that "making money" could help them ease loneliness, which seemed to imply that their loneliness was actually caused by financial insecurities.
Ways to ease loneliness in 2018 |
|
Reason |
Percentage |
Companion |
22.2% |
Making money |
39.4% |
Friends |
14.6% |
Learning to live alone |
16.7% |
No way to get rid of it |
5.1% |
Others |
2.1% |
Anxiety has become part of the daily lives for white-collar workers in China. According to Zhaopin's survey, more than 90% of them felt anxiety often or occasionally.
Anxiety status of white-collar workers in 2018 |
|
Status |
Percentage |
Sometimes |
62.4% |
Often |
32.5% |
Not clear |
0.7% |
Never |
4.4% |
"Low salary" and "no clear career path" were the top causes for anxiety among white-collar workers. Heavy economic burdens, including supporting parents, children's education and mortgages, made them even more anxious.
Reasons for anxiety in 2018 |
|
Reason |
Percentage |
Low salary and could not support quality life |
29.9% |
Too busy with work and no leisure time |
11.6% |
No clear career path |
27.9% |
Still single |
8.2% |
Supporting parents |
6.9% |
Children's education |
5.4% |
Mortgages and car loans |
8.2% |
Others |
1.9% |
Nearly 70% dissatisfied with salaries
Nearly 70% of white-collar workers were dissatisfied with their salaries and believed that their current salaries were below their expectations and did not match their skills.
Attitudes towards salaries in 2018 |
|
Attitude |
Percentage |
Below expectation and does not match skills |
66.5% |
Satisfied |
25.3% |
Not clear |
7.0% |
Beyond expectation |
1.3% |
"Salary below expectations" was also white-collar workers' biggest source of dissatisfaction towards their jobs, according to Zhaopin's survey.
Dissatisfactions with jobs in 2018 |
|
Dissatisfaction |
Percentage |
Salary below expectations |
32.7% |
Welfare package |
10.1% |
Superior-subordinate relationship |
3.6% |
Relations with co-workers |
1.6% |
Promotion limits |
13.9% |
Uncertain prospects of companies |
15.5% |
Imbalance of work and life |
10.7% |
Not interested in current work |
9.0% |
Others |
2.8% |
As to reasons for their below-expected salaries, 40.9% of white-collar workers said their competences were not recognized by their companies. High living costs also made their salaries appeared deficient in comparison.
Reasons for below-expectation salaries in 2018 |
|
Reason |
Percentage |
Competence not recognized by company |
40.9% |
High living costs |
27.6% |
Not interested in current work |
11.8% |
Not competent |
7.7% |
Others |
12.0% |
Zhaopin found in its survey that 34.5% of white-collar workers had never received a pay raise, and another 31% got pay increases below 10% recently.
Recent pay raise for white-collar workers |
|
Raise |
Percentage |
Never |
34.5% |
1% to 10% |
31.0% |
10% to 20% |
18.3% |
20% to 30% |
8.2% |
30% to 40% |
3.9% |
Over 40% |
4.1% |
For their plans for the next 12 months, 36.6% of white-collar workers would seek to change jobs and 17.3% hoped for promotion with a pay raise.
Next 12-month plan for white-collar workers |
|
Plan |
Percentage |
Changing jobs |
36.6% |
Promoted with pay raise |
17.3% |
Pay raise |
15.9% |
Feeling lost with no plan |
10.7% |
Down-to-earth and working hard |
8.4% |
Starting own business |
4.4% |
Getting promoted |
4.1% |
Maintaining current situation |
1.1% |
Others |
1.6% |
For more information, please contact:
Zhaopin Limited
Ms. Serena Sun
roujia.sun@zhaopin.com.cn
ICR Beijing
Mr. Edmond Lococo
Phone: +86 10 6583-7510
Edmond.Lococo@icrinc.com
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