In a now-deleted post, Gu, who is believed to be in his mid-20s, said he felt “trapped” in the steel-based industrial city and worried he had “sold his freedom and his soul”.
She said despite having other job offers last year, she chose to accept the position due to pressure from her parents and because she felt it was her best chance for job security.
“At the time, I was exhausted every day dealing with relatives and answering dozens of phone calls and long voice messages from my mother,” she said. “As time went on, [the persuasion] It escalated into a mixture of cynicism and hysteria.”
Mr. Gu said, Genba lifeIt means “selected and assigned graduates.”
01:12
A record 2.1 million Chinese take civil service exams amid economic slowdown and rising youth unemployment
A record 2.1 million Chinese take civil service exams amid economic slowdown and rising youth unemployment
The party selects students from elite universities for both government and party roles and assigns them to grassroots-level posts as part of a training procedure for cadres to take on senior positions.
Her article went viral in late May and was picked up by commentators in the domestic media, with many criticizing the graduate as “selfish” for saying that civil servants should serve their country, but others expressed sympathy and said she was simply expressing personal feelings.
It also highlights the dilemma faced by many young Chinese who face pressure from their families to secure a civil service job, seen by many as the “iron rice bowl” that brings stability and social status.
After decades of rapid growth, China’s economy has been hit by the coronavirus pandemic and has slowed in recent days.
The fact that so many people were willing to take the chance despite the low chances of success reflects pressures in the broader job market.
More than 11.5 million graduates entered the job market last year and that figure is expected to reach 11.8 million this year, but unemployment in the 16-24 age group has soared and employment insecurity is widespread in some sectors.
Gu resigned from his post in April, according to domestic news site The Paper, which reported that official information about civil servants in Jiayuguan confirmed that Gu had studied German language and literature.
In the article, Gu, a native of Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu province, wrote that he had expected to find a job in his home city, but was surprised to be offered a position in a small city about 800 kilometers (500 miles) away.
Looking back on her time at Jiayuguan, she described it as a “harsh environment of dust and howling winds” where she worked “endless overtime.”
“My mother sometimes takes me there by car. [to the station]”When we parked at the station entrance, she was actually crying in the car,” Gu wrote.
“In her heart, she regretted not believing me when I told her that Jiayuguan was just a small, backward prefecture capital in the Gobi Desert, where she was trapped and could not move around freely.
“I couldn’t sleep on the train, I felt like a slave being pulled by a train full of slaves to different places… and I felt like a prostitute who was just selling her freedom and her soul.”
She said her university supervisor told her not to take the job, saying, “How can you bear to go to such a remote and backward area?”
She also warned that they would not find suitable partners among local men, adding: “I will not allow my students to become lascivious women.”
Last Monday, the Communist Party’s official newspaper, Study Times, published an article by Liu Yongsheng, party chairman from Jiayuguan city, saying that young cadres should focus on their work and always “put the greater cause and the collective first in any situation and minimize personal interests.”
Some people on social media platforms have criticised the graduate’s comments about Jiayuguan as “arrogant” and “disrespectful”.
“Choosing to express your dissatisfaction in a short essay not only lacks basic respect for the city and its civil servants, but also reflects personal immaturity and a lack of professional ethics,” one Weibo user wrote, adding that she “should have just quit with a legitimate reason.”
But others were more understanding, writing: “It’s a personal choice, why bring it under scrutiny and attention? People should be free to live their own lives, why impose universal societal values on a young girl who has just graduated?”
“It’s understandable that people despise small places and yearn for better, higher-paying jobs…” [however] “There’s no need to badmouth them, especially in public,” a Weibo user wrote.
Professional commentators also weighed in. Professor Ma Liang from Renmin University told the paper that Gu’s article was merely an “expression of emotion” and should not be subject to harsh criticism.
11:04
Why are so many Chinese young people choosing to become “full-time children” who work for their parents?
Why are so many Chinese young people choosing to become “full-time children” who work for their parents?
Hu Xijin, a former editor-in-chief of the nationalist newspaper Global Times, also said in a Weibo post that people should not be too harsh on her choice, but added that civil servants needed to have the right mindset to “serve the needs of the country and follow any assignment”.
He said public sector roles were often “idealised” by jobseekers who overlooked their shortcomings.
“If you fear overtime, always prioritize ‘personal freedom,’ cannot accept assignments that go against your wishes, and just want a stable 9-to-5 job, then you should not choose a career in civil service,” he wrote.
The Post was unable to contact Gu directly.
