After the Lunar New Year holidays in China, millions of workers failed to show up to their jobs at factories. While some turnover is always expected, this year the numbers were higher than ever before, despite the pay increases many workers have received. Companies say that they are looking into moving production away from China, where labor is no longer as cheap or prevalent, and into other Asian countries like Cambodia and Laos. Analysts say that China's one-child policy has led to a declining and aging workforce, and one that does not want the low-wage, factory jobs. After a string of suicides and strikes last year, many companies gave workers pay increases, but that does not seem to have been enough to keep workers at their jobs.
See "Not cheap or cheerful: south China's new paradigm", April 4, 2011