To Float or Not to Float? Internal Migration of Skilled Laborers in China

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Dec 4;17(23):9075. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17239075.

Abstract

This paper uses data from job-recruiting platforms to study the distribution patterns and migration destination choices of a skilled internal migrant population. We find that, in most first-tier cities and most emerging second-tier cities, more than half of the skilled jobseekers do not hold local household registration. The most important finding of this paper is the heterogeneity of attributes prioritizations between intra- and inter- provincial migrants. Intra-provincial skilled migrants put more value on employment opportunities than on amenity attributes, while their inter-provincial counterparts prioritize amenity over employment aspects.

Keywords: amenity; internal migration; location choices; population redistribution; skilled laborers.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • China
  • Demography
  • Developing Countries
  • Economics
  • Emigration and Immigration*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Personnel Selection*
  • Population Dynamics
  • Socioeconomic Factors
  • Transients and Migrants*