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HUMAN GEOGRAPHY  2013, Vol. 28 Issue (6): 36-42,160    DOI: 10.13959/j.issn.1003-2398.2013.06.012
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DRIFTING AND ALIENATION: AN EXPLORATION OF THE MIGRANT WORKERS' URBANISM IN SHENZHENG'S FOXCONN CITY
Daniel You-ren YANG
Department of Sociology, Tunghai University, Taichung 40767, China

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Abstract  Although there have been extensive studies on Chinese urbanization, few researches focus on the migrant workers in the world factory city and contextualize their livelihoods in those neighborhoods. This paper pays attention to the new-generation migrant workers' way of life in Shenzheng's Foxconn city, understood as a relevant pattern of China's urbanism. Main research methods used were quantitative questionnaire analysis and qualitative in-depth interviews. Purposive sampling are used for collection of samples in field investigations conducted in July 2010, March 2011 and July 2011, each took around two weeks. 316 questionnaires were issued nearby Foxconn's plant in Shenzhen. Based on the first-hand survey data and in-depth interviews, we find evidence of "social alienation" is very common to these workers' urban experience. Furthermore, we argue that the interplay of hukou system, urban policy, Foxconn's enterprise strategies and labor control politics contributes to such alienated urbanism. Besides, there is not much opportunities for technique learning at the Pugong's(普工) work unit. On the production lines they are faced with base-level management's supervisory pressure as well as manipulation of workplace politics that strive for productivity. Off work, Pugong is the wanderer in the city without much chance for social interaction. Moreover, the workers are coping with huge disadvantages in regards of economic and hukou system if they wanted to settle in Shenzhen. Most Pugong would not settle and get married in Shenzhen, their family status is most often "split household" in two different places. Finally, this study highlights the multi-scalar institutional barriers that squeeze the development of migrant workers' social networks and calls on an institutional reform.
Key wordsalienated urbanism      social network      migrant labor regime      labor control     
Received: 16 March 2012     
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http://rwdl.xisu.edu.cn/EN/10.13959/j.issn.1003-2398.2013.06.012      OR     http://rwdl.xisu.edu.cn/EN/Y2013/V28/I6/36
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