ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the wage and employment characteristics of migrants and locals in the context of migrant-concentrated communities based on a five-city data set. Nonetheless, few studies have compared wages and employment conditions between migrants and locals in migrant-concentrated communities. The chapter considers the surveys undertaken in 2003 in five Chinese cities. This chapter presents a multivariate analysis that provides a deeper understanding of the contributing factors to the wage gaps and differentials in employment status between migrant workers and local workers. The results are based on survey data from 25 migrant-concentrated communities in five Chinese cities, in which urban residents are relatively disadvantaged compared with urban residents living in other urban communities. Many cities in China have set up various poverty lines in recent years under the Minimum Living Standard Scheme (MLSS). Most urban residents whose incomes were below the poverty line would be able to get a minimum living allowance from the local welfare department.
