Vocational status and living conditions are key factors that determine the quality of life of workers. In light of a rural–urban migration wave during the past decade, this study examined migrants’ experiences of occupational and housing inequality in major urban centers. Based on data from original household-level surveys conducted in four large cities, the study investigated the vocational and tenurial situations of different social groups. Estimates obtained using a binary logistic model indicated that apart from socioeconomic factors similar to those impacting Western societies, specific institutional factors such as the Hukou system, state-associated vocations, and residential status, were significant determinants of housing inequality. The study confirmed that there were significant disparities in the vocational status and housing conditions of urban residents and migrant workers in major Chinese cities. Along with excessive privatization of urban housing, the predominance of the Hukou urban housing system has created inequalities in employment, and in the housing market, in major Chinese urban centers, leading to housing poverty among migrant households. © 2017, Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.

China Vocational status Housing inequality Migrants Hukou

institutional framework education quality of life privatization China social housing housing market living standard migrant worker household survey immigrant population