China White-collar Average Salary Rises Slightly in the Fourth Quarter of 2017

BEIJING, Jan. 15, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Zhaopin Limited ("Zhaopin" or the "Company"), a leading career platform in China focused on connecting users with relevant job opportunities through their career lifecycle, released its 2017 fourth-quarter report on China labor market supply and demand for white-collar workers. While the competition for jobs was relatively stable in the fourth quarter, the average monthly salary for white-collar workers went up slightly to reach RMB7,789, representing a 2.5% increase over the previous quarter.

Fourth-Quarter of 2017 China White-Collar Labor Market Highlights:

• The average monthly salary for white-collar workers reached RMB7,789 in the fourth quarter of 2017, up 2.5% over the third quarter.
• Beijing continued to be the city with the highest pay in the fourth quarter of 2017, with an average monthly salary of RMB10,310, up from RMB9,900 in the third quarter.
• Competition for jobs among white-collar workers remained stable in the fourth quarter of 2017, with an average of 31 applications per job vacancy, compared with 30.4 applications in the third quarter.
• Real estate/construction/building materials/engineering became the most competitive sector for job seekers in the fourth quarter of 2017, with 45.1 applications per vacancy.
• The most competitive occupation in the fourth quarter of 2017 was software/internet development/system integration with 93 applications per vacancy.

Average salary edging up

Based on online job postings in 37 key cities in China compiled by Zhaopin, the average monthly salary for white-collar workers reached RMB7,789 in the fourth quarter of 2017, up 2.5% over the third quarter. As white-collar workers were waiting for annual reviews and year-end bonuses, they had relatively low intention to change jobs in the fourth quarter, and employers had to offer higher salaries to fill urgently needed positions.

Among job postings in the fourth quarter of 2017, 32.6% of positions offered monthly salaries between RMB4,000 and 6,000, and 28.9% offered monthly salaries of more than RMB8,000. About 21.2% of positions offered monthly salaries between RMB6,000 and 8,000.

Beijing continued to be the city with the highest pay in the fourth quarter of 2017, with an average monthly salary of RMB10,310, up from RMB9,900 in the third quarter. Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hangzhou and Ningbo retained their rankings among the top five. Dongguan climbed to 6^th in the ranking with an average monthly salary of RMB8,023 in the fourth quarter, up from 8^th in the previous quarter.

Funds/securities/futures/investment replaced professional services/consulting (finance and accounting, legal and Human Resources, etc.) as the best-paying sector in the fourth quarter of 2017 with an average monthly salary of RMB10,358. Intermediary service ranked 2^nd in the fourth quarter with an average monthly salary of RMB10,292.

The top three occupations with the highest monthly salaries in the fourth quarter of 2017 were senior management (RMB21,673), IT management/project coordination (RMB14,250) and securities/futures/investment management/service (RMB12,115).

Wholly foreign-owned enterprises offered the highest average monthly salary of RMB8,323 in the fourth quarter, followed by RMB8,247 for joint ventures and RMB8,196 for public companies.

Larger companies offered higher salaries in the fourth quarter. Small and micro-sized companies were not competitive with relatively lower salaries.

Job market competition remaining stable

Zhaopin publishes the quarterly competitive index for the labor market in China based on data collected from its online platform. The competitive index is calculated based on the number of resume applications divided by the number of job vacancies. For the fourth quarter of 2017, the competitive index was 31, which means there were an average of 31 applications per job vacancy, keeping stable from 30.4 in the third quarter of 2017.

The labor market competition remained at a relatively low level in the fourth quarter of 2017. Most white-collar workers were reluctant to change jobs in the quarter as they were waiting for year-end performance reviews and bonuses.

(Competitive index = number of applications/number of job vacancies)

Beijing was by far the most competitive city for white-collar workers, with a competitive index of 86.4 in the fourth quarter of 2017, up from 82.4 in the third quarter. Shenyang became the second most competitive city with a competitive index of 40.9 in the fourth quarter. The labor market in Shenyang was under pressure with more job seekers coming from industries with over-capacities and other cities in Northeast China.

First-tier cities (Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou) continued to be the top four cities with the highest job demand in the fourth quarter of 2017. Emerging first-tier cities, including Zhengzhou, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Nanjing and Xi'an, were also among the top ten cities with the highest job demand.

Eight of the top ten cities with most job applications in the fourth quarter of 2017 were also cities with the highest job demand, indicating that these cities with high job demand were also attracting job seekers. Chengdu was the most attractive emerging first-tier city for job seekers with its booming economy and comfortable living environment.

In terms of employer size, companies with 1,000 to 9,999 employees were the most competitive for job seekers, with an index of 41.2, followed by 34.8 for companies over 10,000 employees. The competition for positions in small and micro-sized companies remained low due to low brand recognition and high risk.

Supply and demand by sector

In the fourth quarter of 2017, the internet/e-commerce sector continued to top the list with the most job vacancies, followed by education/training/college and real estate/construction/building materials/engineering sectors.

Real estate/construction/building materials/engineering became the most competitive sector for job seekers in the fourth quarter of 2017, with 45.1 applications per vacancy. The government-imposed restrictions aimed to tame the overheating real estate market led to slack demand and increased labor supply.

Insurance continued to be the least competitive sector in the fourth quarter of 2017, with 11.6 applications per vacancy, followed by 17.1 for intermediary service and 17.9 for office supplies and equipment.

The sectors with the most job applications in the fourth quarter of 2017 included internet/e-commerce, computer software and real estate/construction/building materials/engineering.

Supply and demand by occupation

The top occupations with the most vacancies for white collar workers in the fourth quarter of 2017 were almost the same as in the third quarter of 2017, including sales, administration/logistics/secretary, and software/internet development/system integration.

The most competitive occupation in the fourth quarter of 2017 was software/internet development/system integration with 93 applications per vacancy, followed by 82.4 for IT quality management/testing/configuration management, and 62.6 for finance/auditing/tax.

The least competitive occupations in the fourth quarter of 2017 were insurance with 9.4 applications per vacancy, followed by 10.1 for healthcare/beauty/hairdressing/bodybuilding, and 11.1 for mechanic/operator.

The top ten occupations with the most job applications in the fourth quarter of 2017 were almost the same as in the third quarter of 2017.

For more information, please contact:

Zhaopin Limited 
Ms. Daisy Wang 
Investor Relations 
ir@zhaopin.com.cn

ICR Beijing
Mr. Edmond Lococo
Phone: +86 10 6583-7510
Edmond.Lococo@icrinc.com

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