Lavoratori migranti e città

In the past two decades, stories of unpaid wages, excessive work hours, labour-related injuries and workers’ struggles have shaped the narrative of migrant labour in China. Yet, the Chinese society is undergoing a series of structural changes that require a critical rethinking not only of the role of migrant workers, but also of the relationship between migrants and cities. First, a new generation of migrants born after the beginning of the reforms is now taking the stage. Second, the development of the inner provinces and other concurrent factors are leading to a gradual redistribution of migratory flows all over the Chinese territory. This paper will focus on these two phenomena, providing a key to understanding migrations in China at the time of the “new urbanization”.