ABSTRACT
When China announced its reform plans in 1978, few could have anticipated the miracu-
lous growth that it will record, especially since 1992. Under the leadership of Mao, China
had built the elements of nationalism for the central government to direct economic
development, which helped a nationally united command economy to stimulate economic
development through the unleashing of market forces, private dwellers and rapid integra-
tion into the global economy. Trade and investment flows brought China closer to the
global economy. From specialization in light manufactured exports, China has undergone
considerable structural change to participate in heavy and knowledge-intensive manufac-
tured goods (Rasiah, Miao, and Xin, 2013). However, some economists have questioned
China’s rapid growth by either claiming that official statistics are not reliable or that it
has largely been propelled by agriculture, land use and labour-intensive industries (Young
2003).1 Even more so China’s labour markets remain under-examined from the stand-
point of whether rapid growth has been reflected in improvements to wages and working
conditions. The latter is important to determine if China is following the high road to
industrialization.
