Job Security Surpasses Salary as the Top Priority for Chinese Workers

27 May, 2024

Shanghai, China, May 27, 2024 — ADP, a global leader in payroll and human capital management, has surveyed 1,903 employees across all industries in China in its People at Work 2024: A Global Workforce View report. Compared with last year’s report, the importance of job security among Chinese workers increases by more than 10% this year, ranking first among employment considerations (55%), surpassing salary (52%), and career promotion (43%). This obvious change reflects the higher expectations of employees for job security, and also reflects that in the complex employment situation, employees are more inclined to seek certainty in their work to ensure financial wellness.

Ma Li, General Manager of ADP North Asia, says, "A stable job can provide stable income and career development opportunities and reduce unemployment risks and life stress. This new trend reflects workers’ concerns about the job market, deserving attention from companies and managers.

“To support the company's long-term sustainability development strategy with talent acquisition, it is crucial to consider the following: creating a healthy and stable working environment for employees, actively collaborating with employees about market dynamics, providing employees with a sense of security, and offering training opportunities that benefit employees’ career development."

Generational differences also bring about trade-offs in the workplace. Generally, job security is more important for workers aged above 35 years old, who prioritise job security as the most important factor in their employment, while those born after 2000 still value salary the most.

Interestingly, the importance of job security is lowest for workers born after 2000, at 42%. This variation in priorities reflects the diverse choices of workers of different ages in terms of career planning and life stages. With age, workers tend to focus more on family stability and economic security, making job security an essential, if not the primary, consideration. In contrast, younger workers born after 1990 prioritise personal financial independence and salary. They may be more willing to take risks in pursuit of high salaries.

Ma adds, "Compared to older workers, younger workers, particularly those born after 2000, exhibit more confidence in adapting to market changes, and they pay more attention to the potential and opportunities of emerging industries.

Enterprise and HR managers must adapt to the needs of the new generation of employees. It is important to understand the different requirements and attitudes of employees from different generations towards the economic environment. This understanding will enable managers to provide a more flexible, diverse, and personalised compensation and welfare system.”

ENDS

About the research

People at Work 2024: A Global Workforce View explores employees’ attitudes towards the current world of work and what they expect and hope for from the workplace of the future.

ADP Research Institute® surveyed 34,612 workers in 18 countries around the world between 22 October – 24 November 2023, with at least 500 per market specifically in the gig economy. This included:

15,383 in Europe (France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom)
9,567 in Asia Pacific (Australia, China, India, Japan and Singapore)
5,860 in Latin America (Argentina, Brazil and Chile)
3,802 in North America (Canada and the United States)

Within the worker sample gig workers were identified as those who work on a contingent, temporary, or seasonal basis, or as a freelancer, independent contractor, consultant, gig worker, or use an online platform to source work. Traditional employees were identified as those who are not working in the gig economy and instead have a permanent full or part-time position.

The survey was conducted online in the local language. Overall results are weighted to represent the size of the working population for each country. Weightings are based on labour force data from the World Bank,¹ which is derived using data from the ILOSTAT database, the central statistics database of the International Labour Organization (ILO), as of February 8, 2022.

About ADP (NASDAQ – ADP):

Designing better ways to work through cutting-edge products, premium services and exceptional experiences that enable people to reach their full potential. HR, Talent, Time Management, Benefits and Payroll. Informed by data and designed for people. Learn more at ADP.com

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China Media Contact: Adp.mediahub@inmatt.com