Graduates increasingly willing to work in second and third-tier cities

More undergraduates are willing to leave Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou to seek work in second and third-tier cities, says a report by a Chinese employment website, the Nanfang Daily reported.

But demand for labor remained strong in 2013, especially in the financial and real estate industries, according to the "Change, Leading Trend; Mission, Boosting Growth" report released by Zhaopin on Monday.

More college students are willing to leave Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou to work in second and third-tier cities, different from 1970s and 1980s trends, the report noted.

About 46 percent of students were willing to go to second and third-tier cities in 2011. The 2013 figure rose to 61 percent. The proportion willing to work in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou was 53.8 percent in 2011, plunging to 38.7 percent in 2013.

Vacancies grew 26 percent in central China, 29 percent in western China and 25 percent in eastern China.

Vacancies in the first 10 months of this year increased 26 percent over the same period last year, according to Zhaopin data, with recruitment rising rapidly in the finance and real estate sector.

The financial industry saw the most growth in vacancies, rising 91 percent from the same period last year. Employment opportunities in real estate grew 53 percent. New manufacturing job positions increased 9 percent. Foreign investment companies saw the weakest growth in recruitment of 3 percent.

Demand for labor and talent on the market was large, summarized Zhaopin chief executive Guo Sheng, but undergraduates often could not find jobs to match their majors. Companies didn't always need university undergraduates' skills, but relevant jobs skills.

Companies were more willing to employ workers with experience in society. People born in the 1990s were unwilling to accept a job below expectations, Guo claimed.

"This report for the first time uses the data from the job-hunting Internet, analyzing the relationship between the labor market and macro economy," Guo said. "The year 2013 is a reform year, but also the biggest year of change in the human resources and labor markets."