Unemployed young people in China are reportedly leaving home every morning and spending their days in libraries, parks, cafes and shopping malls to conceal their job losses from their families. Rising employment uncertainty, AI-driven redundancies and social expectations are among the factors contributing to the trend.

Beijing: A growing trend among unemployed young people in China has drawn attention on social media. Despite losing their jobs or struggling to find employment, some continue to get ready and leave home every morning as though they are heading to the office. In reality, they have nowhere to report for work. Instead, they spend their days in public spaces, including libraries, parks, cafes and shopping malls, before returning home in the evening.

For many, the aim is not simply to fill the day but to keep their unemployment a secret from parents and relatives. The trend has highlighted the pressure young people face in China’s uncertain job market, as well as the emotional strain associated with losing employment.

Pretending to Work to Avoid Family Questions

According to a Reuters report, some unemployed people in China are pretending to go to work to avoid questions from their parents and relatives. They leave home in the morning and return in the evening, maintaining the appearance of having completed a normal working day.

Thirty-two-year-old Coco Li is one such example. She previously worked for a state-owned real estate company in China but resigned more than six months ago after struggling with excessive work pressure and feeling that her efforts were not adequately recognised.

However, she chose not to tell her family about leaving her job. On one occasion, she considered sharing a photograph of a home-cooked meal in the family group chat but became concerned that her mother might ask why she was at home during working hours. She eventually decided against sharing the picture.

Li believes that her mother’s anxiety about her employment situation could add to her own distress without helping her secure another job. As a result, she has continued to keep her unemployment a secret from her family.

Social Media Fuels Discussion Around the Trend

The phenomenon has sparked widespread discussion on Chinese social media, where users are sharing experiences and advice on managing unemployment without alerting family members.

Conversations include how to spend the day without a job, avoid uncomfortable questions from relatives and conceal the loss of employment from parents.

According to the report, posts related to the trend have attracted more than 70 million views on RedNote and over 610 million views on Douyin. A related hashtag on Weibo has reportedly received 320 million views, reflecting the considerable attention the issue has generated online.

AI-Related Job Cuts Add to Employment Concerns

The impact of artificial intelligence on employment is another concern. Thirty-six-year-old Zhang, who previously worked in visual effects production, lost her job in August during a round of AI-related redundancies.

When she later visited a library, she was surprised to find it crowded despite it being a working day. The experience offered a glimpse into how people without jobs are spending their time outside the home.

Others have shared accounts of their attempts to return to employment. One social media user said they had spent 30 days unemployed and applied for 80 jobs during that period. Such experiences highlight the difficulties jobseekers can face even when they are actively searching for work.

Social Expectations Add to the Pressure

Financial uncertainty is not the only reason some young people are hiding their unemployment. Social expectations and family pressure also appear to play a significant role.

In many families, having a job is closely associated with success, independence and financial stability. Losing employment can therefore bring more than concerns about paying bills or securing another source of income. It can also mean facing worried parents, questions from relatives and repeated advice about career choices and future plans.

For some young people, pretending to go to work may offer a temporary way to avoid these uncomfortable conversations. However, the trend also highlights the difficulties they face in dealing with unemployment while trying to meet family expectations.

As uncertainty in the employment market continues to affect jobseekers, the growing online discussion suggests that the challenges of unemployment extend beyond financial hardship to include social expectations and the pressure to maintain appearances.