The setting up of a department to deal with issues concerning rural migrant workers by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security is of far-reaching significance to the 200 million villagers-turned workers.
The phenomenon of rural migrant workers is unique to this country in its transition from a planned economy to a market one and from an agriculture-dominated nation to an industrial one. The swarming of millions of rural surplus hands into cities nationwide in the early 1980s did put many municipal governments at a loss on how to help them settle down.
Loads of problems arose with this particular group of people, who were at a disadvantaged status, when everything was new to them from signing labor contracts with their employers to getting reasonable pay for the job they were assigned to.
Among other things, payment default has become common for many migrant workers. Premier Wen Jiabao's help to one such worker in Chongqing to get back his defaulted payment has become a metaphor for national efforts assisting these workers in recovering their salaries in arrears.
In spite of continuous efforts by local governments in this regard, there are always cases of rural migrant workers being unjustifiably treated. Such treatment includes forcing them to sign an unfair labor contract or employing them even without a contract or coercing them to sweat in terrible conditions.
When settling in cities, they also meet with such thorny problems as getting their children equal education as their urban counterparts, enjoying the same social benefits as their urban follow residents and being really accepted by their urban counterparts as brothers and sisters.
To be objective, living and working conditions for rural migrant workers have improved considerably in quite some cities in the past couple of years. But there is still a long way to go for them to really melt into the cities, to the development of which they have been making contributions.
Yet, it takes time to abolish the decades-old duel-track social structure that has put rural villagers at a disadvantaged position.
After all, the establishment of this new department should be good news for this group of new urbanites because its function is to solve their problems and improve their conditions.
(China Daily July 22, 2008)