Bao Xianfeng, a migrant worker in north China's Shanxi Province, could not help smiling when receiving the National Labor Medal, the country's highest honor for industrial workers.

He is China's first migrant worker winning the award.

"I never dreamed of getting this honor," said the 37-year-old man, not quite prepared for the good news.

The National Labor Medal was intended mainly to reward laborersworking in the front-line state-owned enterprises, for their outstanding performance and contributions to the society.

Though in recent years millions of farmers rushed into urban area and did the similar job, the migrant workers were excluded from the honor as they were not considered part of the industrial worker staff.

"Bao's winning the medal shows the gap between migrant workers and urban workers is getting narrower," said Yao Xinzhang, chairman of Shanxi provincial trade union.

This February, in its No. 1 document on raising farmers' income,the central government made a clear statement, saying that migrantworkers have become an important part of China's industrial workers.

The All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) also said migrant workers were qualified to join the trade unions and urged its local organizations to strengthen protection of their rights.

"This means the government has acknowledged migrant workers' role and status," said Yao.

The issues concerning migrant workers have attracted attention from state leaders. Last year, Premier Wen Jiabao urged local governments to spare no efforts to get the defaulted payment back for migrant workers.

Yao said, rights protection of migrant workers should not only focus on their labor rights and economic benefits, but also enhance their social status and give them equal chance with urban workers.

Though only receiving primary education, Bao has rich experiences in construction, said an official in charge of the modal worker selection in Shanxi.

Bao has engaged in construction work for 15 years, from a greenhand to an experienced worker, and finally a group leader now. Owing to his efforts, the cost of construction in his company werelowered via technology innovation and simplified procedure.

Along with Bao, another three migrant workers were also grantedthe honor of model workers in the province this year.

Liu Hu, a migrant worker in Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi, and hisworkmates were encouraged by the news. He said:" It shows we farmers working in cities are getting equal treatment with urban workers."

As Bao is the only migrant worker in the 1,005-winners' list this year, the ACFTU is considering to include more migrant workers in National Labor Medal winners next year, said Zhou Yuqing, vice chairman of the ACFTU.