Plants concerned about return of migrant workers(2)

To prevent more workers from leaving the province, the authorities have raised the minimum wages by 13 percent this year.

"Businesses usually have a 20 percent loss this time every year but the number this year is higher," said Gu Yueming, deputy director of Shanghai SME Development and Service Center.

Gu said many migrant workers are put off by the high cost of living in big cities.

"Low-rent houses have been introduced to reduce cost for new workers in Shanghai but it's still far from affordable to manual laborers whose average pay is just more than 2,000 yuan a month," Gu said.

The separation of couples is another problem in keeping migrant workers, according to Gu.

"Although some employers have tried providing positions for both husband and wife, it's impractical for many others to follow the practice because of the gender preferences by different industries," he said. "For example, men are preferred for express delivery services and women more for work on the assembly line."

Zhang Jian, who had worked at the Shanghai wood factory for five years, opted to take up a new position with the company in his home province after weighing up the benefits.

"I can find a job in the new factory in Anhui now, where the pay is lower than what I got in Shanghai as a manual laborer," said Zhang, from Wuwei county. "But I can take good care of my family and don't have to worry about sending my daughter to a primary school in Shanghai."

He added it was very hard for country people to settle in the city and believed many would eventually return home. "The city dreams of many people in my village are fading," he added.

Wu Yong in Shenyang and Qian Ziliang in Shanghai contributed to this story.