Chinese Youth Flood Applications for Shepherd Roles – What's Behind the Trend?
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – A job posting for a shepherd in a remote region of China has gone viral, sparking widespread discussion about the difficulty of finding employment in the country.
The vacancy, posted by Chinese rancher Zuo Xiaoyong in late April, initially sought two shepherds to manage thousands of sheep in grasslands near Mongolia. However, the advertisement attracted over 700 applicants from diverse professional backgrounds.
Not only factory workers, but also office staff from major cities like Shanghai and Chongqing, as well as recent university graduates, applied. The post became the most popular topic on Chinese social media platform Weibo, with 59 million views within hours and over 21,000 discussions.
“I didn’t expect it to go viral,” Zuo told Reuters on Wednesday, 27 May 2026.
He noted that around 10% of applicants were fresh graduates, many citing debt burdens, fatigue from manufacturing sector jobs, or frustration with corporate politics.
“It seems ordinary people are struggling to find work,” he said.
The phenomenon highlights pressures in China’s labour market. Despite official unemployment rates slightly above 5%, economists note rising underemployment, with private sector income growth lagging behind overall economic expansion for much of the past decade.
Both blue- and white-collar workers frequently complain about the “996” work culture – working from 9am to 9pm, six days a week.
ING China Chief Economist Lynn Song said the strong response reflects a increasingly competitive job market that doesn’t always offer commensurate rewards.
“Urban job opportunities are becoming less attractive and harder to secure,” she said.
Analysts predict China’s labour market could deteriorate further in coming months. Beyond production cost pressures from global geopolitical tensions, widespread AI adoption risks reducing labour demand in several sectors. Challenges are compounded by an expected influx of 12.7 million new university graduates into the job market this summer.
However, the shepherd role is not easy. Zuo is seeking married couples to herd around 3,000 sheep across 2,000 hectares during summer.
In winter, they must feed and clean pens in temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius. In return, workers are offered a monthly salary of 8,000 yuan (approximately Rp18 million, based on a rate of Rp2,250 per yuan), plus accommodation and food.
This exceeds the average private sector salary in urban China of around 6,000 yuan per month.
Shaun Rein, Managing Director of China Market Research Group, said even master’s graduates from top Shanghai universities often earn similar salaries, but most of their income goes toward rent and living costs in big cities.
Despite the high pay, Zuo stressed the job isn’t for everyone.
“The salary is high, but the key is whether someone can endure long-term and survive the winter. This isn’t a holiday,” he said.
The 35-Year-Old Curse
Zuo revealed about half the applicants were born in the 1990s. This age group is caught in China’s “35-year-old curse” phenomenon.
The term refers to many companies, including in the public sector, being reluctant to hire workers over 35. Senior HR lecturer at Victoria University of Wellington, Christian Yao, said the phenomenon is no longer confined to the tech industry.
“We’re seeing the 35-year-old curse evolve from a tech industry meme into a broader economic reality,” he said.
Ultimately, Zuo hired four shepherds – two married couples born in the 1980s with farming experience – while hundreds of other applicants were left empty-handed.
According to Zuo, life in remote ranches isn’t suitable for everyone due to extreme isolation.
“At our place, you might not see anyone for a whole year. I don’t know if everyone can cope with such loneliness,” he said.