Migrant workers returning after the Lunar New Year holiday have low expectations for a pay rise this year, as the number of jobs is not as high as last year. China’s economy has endured a challenging exit from its zero-Covid policy, with its 5.2 per cent growth last year not being felt by consumers or the job market Although there were still four days remaining until the end of the Lunar New Year holiday earlier this month, Baiyun Railway Station in Guangzhou was already packed with migrant workers who had left their hinterland hometowns early to take up jobs in the southern manufacturing hub of Guangdong. Jobseekers of all ages, with accents from all over China, were lingering briefly at the station’s square, dragging suitcases and carrying backpacks, taking a moment to rest, before flocking to the neighbouring cities. Like many newcomers, twenty-something Li Xiao was hoping for a higher salary than his previous night shift factory job in the central province of Jiangxi. “I can accept a waiter job of about 4,500 yuan (US$650) or 5,000 yuan since production line workers are expected to earn about the same this year,” he said. Thirty-something Xu Chao was also hoping to find a job in a car parts factory in Jiangsu. “I’ve been in Guangdong for a few days. The wages are not as good as I thought. There are more electric car companies in the Yangtze River Delta, the opportunities and salaries there may be better” Xu said. Most returning workers have low expectations for a pay rise this year, as the number of jobs in the service or manufacturing sectors is not as high as last year. Dongguan, an export hub in Guangdong which is often the top choice for rural migrant workers, anticipated 163,000 job vacancies after the Lunar New Year, the state-backed China Youth Daily reported earlier this month, citing the local labour and social security bureau. “With fewer export orders, there have been more workers than positions in local companies. Factories are not struggling to recruit workers this year, as lots of migrant workers from Guizhou and Henan have already come back,” said Justin Xu, a manufacturer of lighting products for exports in the eastern province of Zhejiang. The influx of migrant workers is occurring as there are less opportunities in hinterland provinces, with jobseekers in Henan – China’s third most populous province and a key source of migrant workers – crowding a recent job fair. “Our company has a labour gap of about 20 people, but more than 60 people have expressed interest in applying,” a human resource manager said, according to the state-run Henan Daily. The arrival of migrant workers has already reduced the hourly wage for temporary workers in China’s export hubs of Shenzhen and Dongguan by around a third from three years ago to between 18 yuan (US$2.5) to 19 yuan after the Lunar New Year holiday, according to an employee surnamed Li at a recruitment agency in Guangzhou. The period following the Lunar New Year is traditionally the most understaffed and high-paying time of the year as lots of workers remain at home. Li partly attributed the weak demand to factories relocating overseas and corporate endeavours to reduce costs. “Factory owners, if they have any surplus money, are considering investing in plants abroad, which is the only area where they’re still willing to expand,” said Peng Biao, a textile and clothing supply chain specialist. However, overall expectations from factory profits to orders could be even lower this year, Peng added. China’s economy has endured a challenging exit from its zero-Covid policy, with its 5.2 per cent growth in gross domestic product last year not being felt by consumers or the job market. Demand for workers in the new energy infrastructure sector is set to be stronger than last year, but employers are not worried about a shortage even at tough construction sites. Wang Rongshuo, founder of the Guangzhou-based Yangshuo Green Construction, said the photovoltaics infrastructure integrator already has a waiting list for the 3,000 construction workers it plans to recruit this year. “We have a lot of projects across the country. The workers will need to move throughout the year to different construction sites.” Wang said. “Most of our workers are aged between 30 and early 40s. They can earn about 8,000 yuan a month.” The labour surplus is also being seen in some regions in Zhejiang. “Some factory owners have not yet started production so far this year, mainly due to insufficient export orders and operational difficulties,” according to Zhou Libin, manager of Tianshu Mechanical Technology. In the past, many cities or counties in Zhejiang chartered cars and planes to lure workers from central and western parts of China back at this time of the year, however, this was not the case this year, according to Zhou. “Perhaps the government is aware of the limited orders and insufficient production,” he added. Economic uncertainty in the manufacturing sector has also affected the small and micro service sector. “Last year I hired a helper, but I don’t plan to hire anyone this year. My husband and I will work harder. Utility bills are increasing, but we dare not raise prices. We’re doing migrant workers’ business, and their income this year may be worse than last year.” said Li Jie, who runs a breakfast room in Jiangxi.

Seventeen bus companies are accused of illegally transporting more than 33,000 migrants at the behest of Texas Governor Greg Abbott in the $708 million lawsuit. New York City on Thursday filed a lawsuit accusing 17 bus companies of illegally transporting more than 33,000 migrants to the city from the state of Texas. The transport firms are being sued for more than $700 million (€639 million), accusing them of illegally transporting tens of thousands of migrants from the southern border to New York under the guidance of Texas Governor Greg Abbott. The bus firms are accused of taking part in a "bad faith" relocation measure that violates state restrictions on abandoning "needy persons" in New York. The suit seeks economical damages to cover the cost of caring for an estimated 33,000 migrants that have arrived in the United States' largest city on the buses since the spring of 2022. New York had sought to curb the arrival of buses carrying migrants by limiting where they could drop passengers off, as well as introducing prior notification requirements. But those requirements have been circumvented. Migration remains a thorny issue across the political divide ahead of a presidential election set to take place later this year. Adams says Abbot's scheme is 'reckless' Some buses carrying migrants have dropped off passengers in neighboring New Jersey state from where they make the last leg of their journey to New York by railway. "(The city) announced a lawsuit against 17 charter bus and transportation companies that seeks to recoup all costs New York City has incurred providing emergency shelter and services to migrants transported by the charter bus companies, totaling at least approximately $708 million in the last 20 months," the city said in a statement. "New York City has and will always do our part to manage this humanitarian crisis, but we cannot bear the costs of reckless political ploys from the state of Texas alone," New York Mayor Eric Adams in a statement. "Today, we are taking legal action against 17 companies that have taken part in Texas Governor Abbott's scheme to transport tens of thousands of migrants to New York City in an attempt to overwhelm our social services system." Abbot hits back over 'baseless' accusations Abbot has responded by saying the allegations are "baseless." He also took a sideswipe at Adams, posting on X that the New York Mayor "knows nothing about the Commerce Clause of the US Constitution, or about the constitutional right to travel." In July of 2023, the US Justice Department sued the state of Texas over the installment of floating barriers in the Rio Grande River to stop migrants crossing from Mexico. The Rio Grande is 1,896 miles (3,051 kilometers) long, running from Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico. Every day, hundreds of migrants attempt to cross the river to try to enter the US. Republican Texas Governor Abbott has taken several steps in recent years to block migrants. Those included razor-wire fencing, arresting migrants and charging them with trespassing, and bussing asylum-seekers to other states led by the Democratic party.

The inflatable dinghy carrying over 60 people got into trouble off the coast of northern France. One person drowned and another is critically ill, while several others could still be missing. One person has drowned after an inflatable dinghy carrying 66 migrants and refugees towards Britain ran into difficulty off France's northern coast, the French coastguard said Friday. Rescue teams reached the distressed boat at about 1 a.m. local time (0000 GMT) and found that one of its inflatable tubes had deflated. Two unconscious people were pulled from the sea. One was airlifted to the French port city of Calais, while the other could not be revived, the coastguard said in a statement. Boats and aircraft are still looking for remaining survivors around Griz Nez, near the port of Calais, the statement continued. The English Channel, which separates the United Kingdom and continental Europe, is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. Migrant crossings in the English Channel  Tens of thousands of people a year have been making the dangerous crossing of the sea from France in small boats seeking to migrate to the UK. So far this year, more than 29,000 migrants have made the perilous crossing in small boats, according to Migration Watch UK, representing a fall of about one-third compared to 2022. The largest number of deaths in a single incident took place in November 2021 when at least 27 migrants died after a dinghy sank in the Channel. In August this year, six Afghans drowned after their small boat capsized. In late November, a migrant boat carrying 60 people sank and a man and woman drowned. French authorities say that boats are increasingly overloaded, with the average number of about 53 passengers nearly double the average of two years ago. The issue of small-boat migration has become a major political priority for the UK government and a bone of contention between London and Paris.

Pakistan's Interior Ministry said on Tuesday that the almost 2 million Afghans living in the country illegally must leave by the end of the month or face deportation. The Pakistani government recently said that Afghan nationals had been responsible for the majority of suicide bombings in the country this year — 14 out of 24. "We have given them a November 1 deadline," Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti said. Bugti, who is serving in a caretaker capacity, said that some 1.73 million Afghan nationals living in Pakistan had no legal documentation. Why is Pakistan kicking out Afghan nationals? The Pakistani government added that those who did not leave voluntarily would be deported, although it was not clear how they could keep track of who leaves or how they would be able to find those who do not. "If they do not go... then all the law enforcement agencies in the provinces or federal government will be utilized to deport them," Bugti told reporters in Islamabad. State-run news agency APP also cited an unknown government source going even further and saying, "in the first phase, illegal residents, in the second phase, those with Afghan citizenship, and in the third phase those with proof of residence cards will be expelled." The increasingly harsh rhetoric against Afghan refugees comes after an uptick in violence by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — a group with links to the hardline Taliban Sunni militants who retook power in Afghanistan two years ago. The TTP has said it wants to overthrow Pakistan's government and rule with its strict interpretation of Islamic law. Pakistan blames Afghans for spate of violence Much of the Afghan-Pakistan border runs through rugged mountain terrain that is difficult to fully control. Pakistani forces have already carried out numerous operations against Islamist militants in the border regions, including groups that are part of so-called "Islamic State" group. Millions of Afghans have entered Pakistan over the years, following successive wars and authoritarian regimes. Some 600,000 arrived since August 2021. The Afghan embassy said on social media that 1,000 Afghans had been detained in the past two weeks, adding that, "despite the repeated promises of the Pakistan authorities, the arrest and harassment of Afghan refugees by the police in Pakistan continues." Many Afghans are on waiting lists to get Pakistani visas, but the process can take months. Bugti also announced that from November 1, Afghans would only be able to enter the country with valid passports and visas. Until now a national identity card has sufficed.

The leaders from nine Mediterranean and southern European countries met Friday in Malta to discuss migration with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The meeting came a day after the EU failed to agree on changes to the bloc's migration laws. Some 186,000 people have already arrived in Europe via the Mediterranean Sea between January and September 24 of this year, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) Of this, 130,000 have arrived in Italy, an 83% increase compared to last year. Disagreements over solutions to migrant crisis The continuous arrival of boats has put political pressure on the group, which includes Malta, France, Greece, Italy, Croatia, Cyprus, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain. But even among the nine countries, there are disagreements on how to deal with the crisis. Von der Leyen would hold a separate meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and French President Emmanuel Macron on the sidelines of the Malta summit. They will discuss a plan which includes the possible expansion of naval missions in the Mediterranean. Deadly Mediterranean route Separately, the UN's children's agency, UNICEF, warned that  at least 990 people died or went missing in the dangerous central Mediterranean route between northern Africa and Europe, That was three times the number 334, recorded in the same period last year. The agency said 11,600 unaccompanied minors had been among the migrants trying to get to Italy on makeshift vessels between January and September.

At least two migrants including a baby died when their bank sank Saturday soon after leaving the coast of Tunisia, the coastguard said. The vessel, carrying 20 Tunisians, went down at 2:00 a.m. local time (0100 GMT) when it was just 120 meters (395 feet) from the shoreline in the southeastern province of Gabes. "Two bodies have been recovered, one of a 20-year-old man and the other of an infant," the coast guard said in a statement. Thirteen others were rescued, including the baby's parents. Five passengers were missing and search operations were ongoing, the statement added. A similar tragedy occurred off the Tunisian coast on Monday, when a boat carrying migrants sank near the eastern city of Sfax, leaving 11 people dead. Sfax serves as a launching port for migrants from African countries to begin their risky sea journeys to Europe, via the Italian island ofLampedusa. More than 1,800 people have died this year in shipwrecks on the central Mediterranean migration route, the world's deadliest — more than twice as many as last year, according to the International Organization for Migration. Migrant boat sinks in English Channel Once the migrants reach southern Europe, they sometimes head for wealthier countries such as Germany and the UK. The migrants may also take a dangerous journey from France to Britain. French maritime officials reported Saturday that a boat, overloaded with migrants and refugees, capsized in the English Channel, killing six people. UK media reported that the victims were all Afghan nationals, who had been in critical condition when found and were later pronounced dead. About 65 people were estimated to have boarded the boat for the UK and two people may still be lost at sea, the Maritime Prefecture of the Channel and the North Sea said. The English Channel is one of the world's busiest shipping lanes but at its narrowest point, separates France and Britain by just 20 miles (33 kilometers). This year, the number of migrants plying the Channel has fallen about 15% to 15,826 as of Thursday, partly as a result of a joint UK-French monitoring operation along the coast. But since 2018, more than 100,000 migrants have crossed the sea in small boats. Britain passed a new law earlier this year to try to stem the arrival of small boat migrants, which would deport those who arrive illegally back to their home country or a safe third country. But plans to fly some people to Rwanda have been shot down by an appeals court and are now being appealed by the Supreme Court. The passage of people trying to get into and around Europe is often facilitated by smugglers, who may take advantage of their desperation for a fee. The migrants are frequently put on overloaded, unseaworthy boats, which are prone to sinking, particularly in stormy conditions.    Hundreds of migrants saved by French charity French NGO SOS Mediterranee said Friday that its Ocean Viking vessel saved over 600 migrants trapped at sea over the previous two days. The rescue group said 623 people had been brought in on "unseaworthy small boats." Among those rescued were nationals of countries such as Sudan, Guinea and Bangladesh. Sudan in particular is witnessing armed conflict which has driven thousands of refugees out of the country.  The majority of the migrants were picked up by the ship on the sea route between Lampedusa and Sfax.

  A shipwreck off the Italian island of Lampedusa has reportedly killed 41 individuals, Italian media reported on Wednesday. Italian news agency ANSA cited survivors who said the vessel had set sail from the Tunisian city of Sfax to Italy. Four survivors were rescued by a Maltese cargo ship and taken to Lampedusa by the Italian coastguard and were reportedly in a state of shock, according to authorities. The survivors, three men and a woman from Ivory Coast and Guinea, said that 45 people had been on board, including three children. Only 15 people had been wearing safety vests, but they also drowned nonetheless, the survivors said. The vessel reportedly set off last Thursday and travelled for around six hours before it was capsized by a large wave.  

Dozens of people have drowned after a fishing boat carrying migrants capsized off the Greek coast. Another hundred have been rescued but many remain unaccounted for as a large-scale search and rescue operation continues. The death toll from a capsized fishing boat carrying migrants off the coast of southern Greece has risen to 79, the Greek coast guard has announced. A large-scale search and rescue operation was underway on Wednesday morning after the boat, which is believed to have been transporting up to 400 people from near the Libyan port of Tobruk to Italy, capsized during the night in strong winds some 75 kilometers (46 miles) southwest of Greece's southern Peloponnese region. So far, 104 people have been confirmed rescued and taken to the Greek town of Kalamata. They received dry clothes and medical attention in shelters set up by ambulance services and the United Nations Refugee Agency. Four people have been hospitalized with symptoms of hypothermia. Authorities initially put the death toll at 32, before increasing it to 59 and then higher still to 79. Fears remain that it could yet increase even more. How many people are still missing? The search, which involves six coast guard vessels, a navy frigate, a military transport plane, an air force helicopter, several private vessels and a drone from the European Union border protection agency, Frontex, is ongoing. A Greek Migration Ministry source told the AFP news agency that, according to the coastguard, there could have been "hundreds" of people on board the boat. "We fear there will be a very large number of missing persons," the official said. The International Organization for Migration estimated that "up to 400" people may have been on board, noting in a tweet: "We fear more lives were lost." Authorities said the vessel was first spotted in international waters early on Tuesday evening by an aircraft belonging to EU border agency Frontex and two nearby ships. The Greek coast guard said the people on board — none of whom were wearing life jackets and who did not immediately disclose their nationalities — had initially "refused any help." What's the bigger picture? Greece is one of the main routes into the European Union for refugees and migrants from the Middle East, Asia and Africa. About 72,000 refugees and migrants have arrived so far this year in Europe's frontline countries Italy, Spain, Greece, Malta and Cyprus, according to United Nations data, with the majority landing in Italy. Mediterranean smugglers are increasingly taking larger boats into international waters off the Greek mainland to try to avoid local coast guard patrols. On Sunday, 90 migrants were rescued in the area after they made a distress call. And in a separate incident on Wednesday, a yacht with 81 migrants on board was towed to the south coast of the Greek island of Crete after authorities received a distress call. On the other side of the Mediterranean, Libyan authorities launched a crackdown earlier this month, with activists saying that several thousand migrants, including Egyptians, Syrians, Sudanese and Pakistanis, have been detained. Many Egyptians have reportedly been deported back to their home country through a land crossing point.

Eight people are being investigated for possible misconduct after a fire at a migrant facility in Mexico left 39 people dead. Prosecutors in Mexico have announced a homicide probe into the deaths of 39 migrants in a blaze at a detention center. Eight people have been identified as allegedly responsible for the deaths that occurred late on Monday in the northern border city of Ciudad Juarez,  Security Minister Rosa Icela Rodriguez told journalists at a briefing on Wednesday. The people include two federal agents, a state migration officer and five members of a private security firm, she said. An investigation was opened "for the crime of homicide and damage to property," though other possible crimes would also be considered, said Sara Irene Herrerias, head of the human rights unit at Mexico's Attorney General's Office. "None of the public servants or the private security personnel took any action to open the door for the migrants who were inside," Herrerias added. Authorities have come under increased scrutiny after a video surveillance footage posted to social media appeared to show guards leaving as fire surrounded a cell with migrants locked inside. The video showed men kicking on the bars of a locked door as their cell filled with smoke while three people in uniforms can be seen walking past without trying to open the door. Officials had said on Tuesday that a fire broke out overnight in the facility that holds people who have been detained while passing through the country in hopes of making it to the United States. Many of the people at the detention center at the time of the blaze were from Venezuela and Guatemala. All the victims were male and pressure has mounted on the Mexican government to determine why they died after authorities said the female migrants were safely evacuated from the center. "Who didn't let these people out? Clearly there is a serious crime," Rodriguez said, adding the video was part of the investigation. "They weren't capable of opening a gate." The security minister also added that the emergency protocols at the facility would be looked at and an examination of whether the private security company would take place. "It looks like these guards didn't have any training," she said. Meanwhile, Herrerias said that the prosecutors have requested several arrest warrants.

Reports from local media have said that over 30 people have been killed in the blaze. Ciudad Juarez is one of the major crossing points for people seeking refuge in the US. A fire that broke out at a migrant detention center in Ciudad Juarez in Mexico, close to the US border, has left dozens dead, local media reported on Tuesday. The facility holds people who have been detained while passing through the country in hopes of making it to the US. Many of those in the facility at the time of the fire — which broke out overnight — were from Venezuela. Mexican newspaper El Heraldo de Mexico reported that the fire was started by people who were protesting their detention by setting mattresses on fire. Emergency services rushed to the scene and firefighters were able to extinguish the fire. State prosecutors were also on the scene to investigate the cause of the blaze. Border crossing hub Local media said, citing unnamed sources, that the number of those killed in the fire was at least 36. Ciudad Juarez lies on the other side of the border from the US city of El Paso, Texas. Many migrants end up stranded in the city waiting to be able to cross into the US. US President Joe Biden recently set out new restrictions on migration, saying that those who simply cross into the US will no longer be eligible to make asylum claims. Some 200,000 people attempt the border crossing each month. Most come from countries in South or Central America and are fleeing poverty and violence. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), 7,661 people have died or disappeared while trying to migrate to the US. Another 988 have been killed in accidents or due to subhuman conditions.