Two couriers at work Photo: VCG

China said that as many as 100 occupations face a shortage of workers in the first quarter this year. Couriers have jumped to second place followed by sales staffs.

Sales staff, couriers and waiters are among the 100 professions facing a severe shortage of workers in the first quarter in China's job market, according to an employment list released by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security on Tuesday. 

Couriers jumped to second place on the list, up from the 13th in the fourth quarter of 2019. 

The number of delivery orders has risen 20 percent from March, a courier in Shanghai surnamed Fang told the Global Times on Wednesday.

"I pick up and deliver about 100 parcels a day. All of my colleagues have returned to work, yet we are still hiring to resolve a labor shortage," he said.

A recruiter from SF Express at a stand in the Pudong New Area of Shanghai also told the Global Times that more couriers were needed as business has picked up since the coronavirus pandemic was brought under control in the country.

"The couriers make 1.5 yuan for each order. It is not a problem for them to make 8,000 yuan ($1,129) to 12,000 yuan a month," she said.

Topping the list are sales staff, couriers, restaurant waiters, security guards, packers, welders, cleaning staff and porters. Housekeeping staff, property brokers and cashiers vanished from top-10 most demanded occupations in the fourth quarter of 2019.

The job shortage shift is in line with the coronavirus impact as occupations related to virus prevention and control call for a rising number of workers. Five occupations including physician, medical material production worker, sewing machine assembly worker, pharmaceutical preparation worker and cutting worker entered the list for the first time. 

The demand for cooks, bus drivers, hotel cleaning staff, cashiers and car repair workers has been eased due to stalling market demand affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

The manufacturing industry has been hit hard by a labor shortage as 44 of the 100 occupations facing labor shortages are from the manufacturing sector. Market demand for communications system assembly workers, mechanical fitters and electronics installers has increased. 

The gap of labor shortages widened in the first quarter to 850,000 workers, from 664,000 last year as a result of accelerating work resumption in February and March.