China’s Unemployment Solution: Full-Time Children Get Paid to Be Kids

In China, youth unemployment is so bad that some adult children are now getting paid allowances as big as the national average salary just for being their parents’ kids. Known as “Full-Time Daughters” and “Full-Time Sons,” they act as multitasking assistants, helping with chores at home and time spent with their parents. The trend comes as an incredible spike in rates of unemployment for Chinese youth is recorded.

The case matches a “lying flat” movement: Young Chinese workers reject career ambitions and put relaxed living first. Burnout and anti-ambition sentiments seem to be an answer to the highly competitive culture of education imposed by generations before them.

Though it might sound cushy, being a full-time kid is one of the privileges available only to people in China’s middle class and above. Most cannot afford to pay their children a full-time wage, rendering this option unaffordable for most.

While for others, personal fulfilment comes from this role, full-time children create cause for concern over China’s ageing population and the need to actually create real jobs for young people. If the unemployment crisis persists, then it will cost a generation of full-time adult workers.