Peking University Professor Sparks Backlash Over 320 Million-Worker Gig Jobs as “Welfare”
Updated
Updated · The Japan Times · Aug 24
Peking University Professor Sparks Backlash Over 320 Million-Worker Gig Jobs as “Welfare”
3 articles · Updated · The Japan Times · Aug 24
Summary
Zhang Dandan, a Peking University economics professor and deputy dean, drew broad online fury after saying on the financial show “Let’s Talk” that gig work’s flexibility is “a form of welfare.”
Her remarks came during a discussion of social protection for gig workers, where she argued labor economics views flexibility itself as a benefit even as such workers lose formal protections.
The backlash pushed “flexible employment” viral on Chinese social media, tapping wider public anxiety over job insecurity in a cooling economy.
China’s flexible workforce is projected to reach 320 million in 2026, making the dispute a flashpoint in a broader debate over precarious work and social safety nets.