Migrant construction workers are overworked, isolated from urban society and lack labor insurance, a recent survey has found.

In addition, some 53 percent of them don't have an official contract, according to the report by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and Tsinghua University.

The survey polled 5,000 construction workers in Tianjin, Shanghai, Lanzhou, Guangzhou and Chongqing.

About 40 million migrant workers - more than 30 percent of the total - work in the construction industry, according to figures from the All China Federation of Trade Unions.

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Of the workers who did have a signed contract, many remained concerned about their legal rights. Often the contracts were signed without the presence of a representative or agent.

Some 41 percent of the workers said they did not have a copy of the contract, and just 17 percent said they understood the content.

Despite working an average of 10 hours a day and 27 days a month, only 31 percent of the workers polled said they regularly received their full month's salary on time.

The numbers of workers with insurance was also low, the survey said.

Thirteen percent of the migrants had retirement insurance, 31 percent medical insurance, 37 percent disability insurance and just 3.5 percent employment insurance.

The survey said the lack of insurance cover was a concern in an industry that is known to be high risk.

According to the Ministry of Construction, in 2005, 1,195 people were killed in 1,010 construction site accidents.

The survey said migrant workers also have to bear the upset of being separated from their loved ones.

Some 80 percent of those polled were found to be married, but only 25.4 percent lived with their spouses.

A large majority of construction workers said they also felt alienated from mainstream society.

The survey showed that just 20 percent considered themselves urban residents, while 69 percent said they did not. Forty-four percent said they were "looked down on" by urban residents.

Most workers said they spent their leisure time with colleagues at the work site, with just 3.7 percent saying they had a social life outside the site.

(China Daily 07/09/2007 page2)