"Monthly Salary of 1.77 Million Won? Over 700 Applicants Flock to Unexpected Job"

Hundreds Flock to Shepherd Job Posting
Monthly Salary Far Exceeds Urban Average in China

In China, a shepherd job posting has gone viral after attracting more than 700 applicants.

Sheep in the field. Stock photo unrelated to the article. Pixabay.

According to Reuters on May 29 (local time), a ranch owner in Xilinhot, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, received over 700 applications for a shepherd position posted at the end of last month.

The number of people to be hired is two, with a monthly salary of 8,000 yuan (about 1.77 million won). The successful candidates will take care of 3,000 sheep on a grassland spanning approximately 2,000 hectares. If a couple is hired together, they will receive 16,000 yuan (about 3.55 million won) per month. This is significantly higher than the average monthly wage at private urban companies in China, which is around 6,000 yuan (about 1.33 million won).

The job posting quickly spread through Chinese social networking services (SNS) such as Weibo, garnering 59 million views within just a few hours of being made public and drawing significant attention.

The ranch owner, Zuo Xiaoyong, said, "One in ten applicants were recent university graduates," and added, "Half of the applicants were born in the 1990s." In China, those born in the 1990s are considered to be experiencing the so-called "curse of 35," as companies often avoid job seekers over 35 years old, which leads to many facing disadvantages.

In addition, a wide range of people from all over the country applied, including white-collar workers in Shanghai, manufacturing laborers, and members of the younger generation born in the 2000s. Reuters analyzed that, while China's official unemployment rate stands at around 5%, increasing underemployment and stagnant wages in the private sector are fueling instability in the labor market. Fatigue with urban workplace culture was also cited as a factor behind the craze.

In China, the so-called "996 culture," which requires working from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week, still remains prevalent. Some office workers, exhausted by long working hours, are showing interest in ranch life, which is relatively simple and allows them to work in nature.

However, Mr. Zuo cautioned that the reality is not easy, explaining, "In winter, temperatures can drop below minus 30 degrees Celsius, and you may hardly see another person all year."

This summer, a record 12.7 million university graduates are expected to enter the labor market. With the spread of artificial intelligence (AI) and companies moving to cut costs, competition for jobs in China is projected to intensify further.

Meanwhile, after fierce competition, the people selected for the position turned out to be a couple born in the 1980s with prior ranch work experience.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.