The city of Changchun, Jilin province has reported rapid growth in the market for maternity helpers with a peak in the number of newborns expected later this year partly because of China's new second-child policy implemented in October last year,

Service providers in the field seeing a market surge in recent months. One company reports dozens of reservations for maternity helpers, every month since January of this year, and says it is expecting more in the second half. And the growing market has meant more people involved, with a senior caregiver getting about 10,000 yuan a month, and a junior one, slightly under 6,000 yuan. Even a starter can expect around 5, 000 yuan, slightly above the city's average working wage of 4,297 yuan, according to a 2014 Jilin Human Resource and Social Security Dept report.

One manager of a local homemaking service company remarked, "Most families with a second child are well-off and all they want is a well-trained caregiver to look after the new child and the mother. And women at an advanced maternity age need to focus on healing and taking care of their body after delivery."

A senior caregiver is mainly so designated because of her work experience, which means she is quick to get down to business and can handle an emergency better than a newcomer, for example, one Ms Bai, who explains, "I've just taken a half-month course on nursing care for newborns as well as mental health and nutrition. And, I've been doing this for 10 years."