Society

Migrant workers caught up in the web

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-05-22 15:24

Migrants' online lives

"Uploading services used to be a side business for most photo studios, but now it is one of their most popular services, since more migrant workers are living in bigger cities," says Zhou Baohua, a professor of communication at the Journalism School of Fudan University.

"The photo studios providing upload services are mainly distributed in factory districts or urban fringes where migrant workers live, "says Zhou.

"The migrant workers' demand for virtual communication has pushed photo studios into expanding their online services," says Zhou.

Zhou has been researching Internet use among migrant workers in the Yangtze River Delta. After interviewing 842 migrant workers in twelve plants and construction sites in Shanghai and Suzhou, a city in Jiangsu province, he found that around 75 percent of them habitually surf the Internet.

"Nearly every single one of them has a QQ number or a blog," he says.

Wang Wenting, a 20-year-old migrant worker, works at a medical warehouse in Shanghai with a monthly salary of less than 2,000 yuan. She says she started surfing the Internet habitually three years ago, when she would spend up to four hours a day surfing the web after work.

"It's much more interesting to me than window-shopping," she says.

"I had few friends and relatives in the city, so I preferred to go online after work," she says.

Professor Zhou believes there are many factors behind migrant workers' interest in the Internet.

"Low incomes, heavy workloads and isolated living environments have made them feel lost when they pursue their new lives in bigger cities," he says. "They are in sore need of a connection with the outside world."

Qiu Linchuan, an associate professor at the School of Journalism and Communication at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, is helping Professor Zhou with his research. Qiu has found that the younger generations of migrant workers are particularly likely to spend their spare time online.

"Some of them go straight to the Internet cafes after finishing work, rather than going home to rest," says Qiu.

However, Qiu also found that less than 20 percent of migrant workers own their own computer. "Computers aren't cheap for them, but they're not necessarily required," says Qiu. The average migrant worker earns 2,500 yuan per month, according to Qiu's research.

"In addition, devices like computers are not convenient for migrant workers to own, since they migrate frequently," Qiu says.

Professor Zhou believes online services, such as the photo uploading services offered by many studios, allow migrant workers to stay in touch with their families and maintain a sense of identity.

Instant messaging is especially popular with migrant workers. Many of them log on to the service as soon as they get online, according to migrant worker Wang. She says her colleagues are very familiar with the service, and that she has been using it since she was in school.

"I prefer it because many of my colleagues use it, so it's easy for us to connect with each other there," she says.