Civil servant applicants do some last-minute study while waiting to sit the national exam in Chongqing, on November 24. Photo: CFP

If he could go back in time, Qiu Wen (pseudonym) would never have become a civil servant.

As a publicity official at a county administered by the Beijing municipal government, he has lived a routine life the past two years. Usually, he gets up at around 7 am. After a quick breakfast, he arrives at the office at around 8 am. Then, he turns on the computer and begins surfing the Internet.

For the next few hours, he kills time by reading through news web portals until 3 pm, when he leaves the office and heads home.

The next day is much the same. To prove to himself that "he is still alive," he has formed a habit of cleaning his office table every morning, he told China Weekly magazine.

Qiu's main task is to update and enter data on villages and enterprises, then submit them to higher-level government officials, which takes him just one day to complete.

"The future is foreseeable. If I stay in the post, it would take half of my life to get a middle-ranking title. Tell me, is it worth it?" Qiu asked.

Qiu is not alone. There have been increasing numbers of people taking the civil servant exam with the aim of getting a government post. This year saw record numbers of around 1.12 million examinees taking the annual exam, but only 19,000 will be hired by the central government, according to the State Administration of Civil Service.

However, a growing number of young civil servants have described themselves as being caught in "a besieged fortress."

The low pay, tedious errands, strict hierarchy and complicated relationships within the system have left many young civil servants disillusioned.

Analysts have called on authorities to break up the system by distributing social resources evenly into other social sectors, especially into the private sector, so that more youngsters can be assimilated into other parts of the society and make a bigger contribution.

Change of career

Qiu, born in a suburb of Beijing, studied hard at school, got good grades and was eventually accepted by Renmin University of China. In 2011, he received two offers from banks, and signed a contract with China Construction Bank after his graduation. However, he was not enthusiastic about the job. "After all, working at a counter is a service-oriented job and is desperately repetitive," he said.

By that time, over half of his classmates were busy preparing for the annual civil servants exam. Some of them had already been accepted by prestigious government departments. In his hometown, a government post is seen as a decent job.

In February 2011, he decided to try his luck. He took the local civil service exams in Beijing and was eventually given a job as a local civil servant at the propaganda department. His family felt proud, as he was also the first newly-hired civil servant in the county in years.

Despite having to pay a fine to the bank for breach of contract, he did not regret his decision. "The workplace is not far from my hometown and I can have time to take care of my parents," Qiu said.

The first months at work were frustrating. The press releases he wrote were always criticized by colleagues as meaningless. He recalled a large part of his news story about a local sports activity being deleted and being asked to rewrite it several times. "They did not give suggestions, but just staged a beatdown on me," Qiu said.

Two female colleagues, who came to the office earlier than him, bossed him around and made fun of him. They led a small group that spread gossip about him, making him feel extremely uncomfortable.

Qiu's work is trivial and tedious. He was asked to take photos of meetings and inspections. There were no aesthetic requirements, but only one rule: to make sure leaders stood in the middle of the picture and that their facial expressions are fairly good.

"The tedious work would paralyze people's will," Wang Lili (pseudonym), a publicity official in a working group affiliated to the State Council, told the Global Times.

In the first six months of the job, her main task was to copy, receive and deliver files. "I always said, I was either on the road delivering files or about to deliver files," Wang told the Global Times.

Human labyrinth

Handling the complicated yet annoying game of human relationships has always been the first lesson faced by most young civil servants.

Wang said that it is important to remember "never to take sides." "It is playing with fire if you take sides. No one knows what will happen or which side will win and which side will lose," Wang said.

There are also taboos, Wang revealed. "Never skip the hierarchy," Wang said. Normally, lower-level officials are prohibited from reporting to their boss's boss, which could result in great trouble.

Low salaries and limited space for pay rises is another major complaint. Wang, who worked in the government department for over eight years, says her monthly salary is around 5,000 yuan ($820). There used to be allowances and subsidies, but due to the central government's promotion of thrift, ordinary civil servants now have no extra income. Compared with the high salaries of her friends and classmates who work in State-owned companies, Wang said she is always being laughed at because of her pay. "They said I am wasted here," she said.

Wang said she has gone through a lot of ups and downs. In the first two years, she suffered a great deal of depression due to the difficulties of adapting to her environment. "The civil servant group is rather depressive and tedious. When I first came to work, I was active and vigorous, like a happy bird. Soon, I found I was incompatible with the situation," 34-year-old Wang said.

Wang noted that she spent three years getting accustomed to the mood and work style of "the old comrades."

In China, a government appointment is often regarded as an "iron rice bowl" job. The fierce competition for this kind of position reflects people's eagerness for social status, income and security. In most people's eyes, being a civil servant is an honorable and prestigious achievement. Some say it is much easier to get married if you are a civil servant. However, many positions in government are sinecures. Most civil servants normally have few concerns about their posts and personal achievements.

"Being a civil servant is like living in a safe haven. You could stay in government positions forever, as long as you don't make mistakes," Li Hui (pseudonym), who is now a publicity official at a water department affiliated to the State Council, told the Global Times.

No pressure

Li used to work at a top IT company in Beijing earning over 20,000 yuan per month, but quit the job in 2011. Tired of the high pressure caused by a heavy workload and endless business trips, he chose to be a civil servant because of the "stable and secure" lifestyle.

Obtaining a Beijing hukou (household registration) was also Li's top priority. As a non-local citizen, Li could only become a Beijing citizen if he was employed by a government department.  The hukou is also a top concern for people who choose to become civil servants.

Now, Li's salary is around 5,000 yuan a month, and he rents a two-bedroom apartment in the west of Beijing that costs him 4,000 yuan each month.

However, Li remains grateful. "I don't have many expenses. The canteen provides free lunch, and cheap breakfast and dinner. Also, we get a monthly meal allowance. That's enough," Li said.

To his joy, he will get a Beijing hukou before the end of the year.

Working in relatively enclosed and isolated circumstances, civil servants often complain that it is difficult for them to switch to other jobs.

"Some people say you should leave after being in a government post for five years. That's right. However, when your life becomes stable and you get used to the inertia, you will hesitate to disrupt your current life," Wang said.

Qiu kept his spirits up by setting goals in different phases of his life. He fills in his spare time by preparing for various exams. In the past two months, he obtained a certified public accountant (CPA) certificate. He is now preparing for the national judicial examination and financial analyst certificate.

"With the passage of time, the pressure on civil servants will dramatically increase, as channels for promotion for civil servants are limited. The longer you stay in the system, the pressure of getting promoted will increase," Zhang Yiwu, a professor of culture from Peking University, told the Global Times.

Promotions largely depend on assessments of comprehensive capabilities, including the power of execution, the enforcement of leaders' instructions and personal abilities.

"You have to adapt to the situation if you are unable to change it," Wang said.

China Weekly - Global Times