For the first time in historic memory, China is entering a new phase of its population characteristics — there is evidence by 2010 China will lack sufficient workers in rural areas. Two factors have produced this change — rural workers are making a statement by moving with their feet to urban areas in search of better jobs and living conditions, and government fertility policies have led to a 1.7 birth rate which is below the 2.1 needed to maintain population.
Perhaps, it may sound weird, but by 2020 it might not be out of the realm of possibility for Mexican workers to be laboring in China, particularly if wages rise in that nation. The China situation also raises an important issue for Americans — migrant labor is vitally important for a nation’s growth. Shrill cries to keep out illegal immigrants do not obscure the need for those workers since most Americans don’t want to engage in hard physical labor.
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