Starting in the 1980s, more than 300 million migrant workers flocked to big cities. These workers mostly filled low-pay jobs, and they worked hard. And it's the people from villages like these that have built China's cities and its economy. It was like that, one person bringing the next into the cities.įENG: He's from a beltway of small villages, about three hours' drive from Beijing, still full of dirt roads. LIU ZHONGXIAN: (Through interpreter) I followed another villager who had gone out for work in the 1990s. But now they are approaching retirement age, and China must deal with an aging workforce.ĮMILY FENG, BYLINE: Liu Zhongxian has spent the better part of 30 years away from home, working on construction sites like this one all over the Chinese capital, Beijing. Today NPR's China correspondent Emily Feng introduces us to the country's migrant workers, those who propelled China's growth in the past three decades. This week, NPR is bringing you a series that looks at the challenges China is facing.