The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) released a green paper on population and laborers in 2007. The green paper pointed out that three-fourths of all villages in China did not have young and strong laborers to transfer out. The rate of increase in laborers has been dropping year by year. It is expected that the supply exceeding the demand of labors will be reversed during the period of the 11th "Five-Year Plan".

The Development Research Center of State Council took a survey on the utilization of the rural labor force. This survey covered 2,749 administrative villages in seventeen provinces and autonomous regions. We learn from the survey that laborers in 74.3 percent of all villages in China left their home to work in urban areas. Only one-fourth of villages had laborers to transfer out. The proportions of this survey were as follows: 71.6 percent in eastern regions, 76 percent in central regions and 76.4 percent in western regions. The reduction in the numbers of labors who move away suggested that wages of rural workers have increased year by year. The green paper pointed out that since more rural workers are needed in coastal areas, wages of rural workers have increased gradually. From 2003 to 2006, the per capita monthly income of rural workers increased from 781 Yuan to 953 Yuan.

By People's Daily Online