From Factory Floors to Food Delivery: China’s New Working Class

Behind China’s macroeconomic shifts lies a human catastrophe – 34 million manufacturing workers displaced since 2022, with industrial cities becoming monuments to faded globalization.

Ground Zero Reports:

• Dongguan:

  • Empty factory dormitories house only delivery drivers

  • 72% of LED bulb workshops shuttered

• Suzhou:

  • Apple supplier Pegatron’s 20,000 layoffs

  • Suicide hotline calls up 300%

• Foshan:

  • Furniture makers repurposing workshops for mushroom farming

  • 50% vacancy rate in industrial parks

Worker Profiles:

1. Li Wei (38): Former iPhone assembler now driving Didi 16 hours/day

2. Chen Ying (29): Textile seamstress retraining as elderly caregiver

3. Wang Jun (51): Steel welder turned livestream e-commerce host

Government Response:

• “Common Prosperity” vocational camps (5.7M enrolled)

• Forced early retirement (men 55/women 50)

• Rural “Homeland Return” subsidies ($3,000/family)