Two slang terms capture the mindset of young jobseekers in China today: ‘involution’, the ever-increasing pressure to compete which affects all aspects of life, and ‘lying flat’, which is not rising to society’s expectations of over-achievement. Both point to a generational challenge for the Chinese Communist Party.
As youth unemployment hits nearly 20 per cent after the loosening of China’s Covid restrictions, competition for job openings remains intense. Exacerbating this are three structural challenges facing the Chinese economy that have no short-term solution.
