You'd probably never have expected this...
Fred Stopsky, the author of The Impudent Observer, shares with us a relevant discussion, particularly given the American obsession with undocumented immigrants that fills today's media.
His article New China Develpment — Rural Labor Shortage, paints an interesting picture of the likely future of China's workforce where for the first time in historic memory, China is entering a new phase of its population characteristics — there is evidence by 2010 China will lack sufficient workers in rural areas.
You may want to think about this.
For many years American jobs migrated from the farms to the more urban areas. The same phenomenon is occurring today in China. Add to this that while only 11 percent of the Chinese population today is over 60,
the United Nations projects that this segment will increase to 28
percent by 2040. At that time, China is expected to have 397 million
people over 65, which is more than the total current population of
France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom combined. And they all need to be fed.
Consider the trend of more people living in cities, fewer farm workers, lower birth rates, more people at or beyond retirement age (hence fewer experienced workers available), and fewer workers in rural areas to produce the basic food items needed, you have a formula for significant challenges. China may well need to import foreign workers to do the work that Chinese will not longer do. (Sound familiar?)
Mr. Stopsky asserts that the China situation also raises an important issue for Americans — migrant labor is vitally important for a nation’s growth. Our skilled labor force depends upon others providing the "basic necessities" that we have come to expect. What happens if these necessities become increasingly unavailable, or prohibitively expensive to buy?
Today we bemoan the undocumented worker that is arguably a mainstay of America's agrigulture industry. In the future we may wish we had access to these workers as the competition for talent worldwide worsens. Our representatives formulating public policy might want to give this sme consideration.
