中国的社会工作仍处于起步阶段

The concept of social work is still quite new to China, being first introduced only two decades ago. In the past, the government, including state-owned factories and institutions, used to be the sole caretakers of society. Today, fresh college graduates make up the bulk of today’s social workers, doing their part to help those in need.
对中国来说，社会工作的概念还很生疏，它是在20年前引进的。在过去，政府，包括国有工厂和慈善机构是社会唯一的看护者。现在，大学应届毕业生成为当今社会工作者的主体，发挥他们的作用帮助那些有需要的人。

25 year old Li Luling has been a social worker for three years. After graduating, Li’s first job in the field wasn’t quite as rosy as she had once pictured.
25岁的Li Luling成为社工已经三年了。毕业之后，李在这个领域的第一份工作并不像她曾经想象的那么顺利。

Li Luling, a social worker in Xicheng District, Beijing, said, "I was a community worker back then. 3 colleagues left in the first two months. We all felt lost, and felt our work didn’t have value. I left three months later."
北京西城区的社工Li Luling称：“当时我是一名社区工作者。前两个月有3位同事离开了。我们都觉得很失落，觉得我们的工作没有价值。三个月后我离开了。”

Li is now at a social working group in Beijing. Her daily responsibilities include assisting a house for senior citizens in the district.
李现在在北京一个社会工作团体工作。她的日常职责包括协作该地区一间老人院的工作。

She said the poor salary prompted her to make the move. Three years ago, her monthly salary was 13 hundred yuan. But her new job isn’t giving her enough money either.
她表示，微薄的收入促使她离开。三年前，她的月工资是1300元。但是她的新工作也没有带给她足够的钱。

Li Luling, a social worker in Xicheng District, Beijing, said, "I’m now paid 26 hundred yuan a month. Rent costs me 16 hundred."
北京西城区社工Li Luling称：“我现在每月的工资是2600元。房租花费了我1600元。”

Apart from struggling to live a decent personal life with such a low income, Li is also finding it hard to put what she learned into practice.
除了靠着如此低的一份收入努力维持体面的私生活外，李还发现，很难把她所学的运用到实践中去。

Li Luling said, "We studied social work in college. But there are many branches such as caring for the elderly and youth psychology that we weren’t really familiar with."
Li Luling表示：“我们在大学里学的是社会工作。但是有很多分支，比如照顾老人和青年心理学，我们实在不熟悉。”

In 1988, Peking University launched the mainland’s first social work program. But only a very small proportion of graduates went on to work in the filed after their graduation.
1988年，北京大学开设了大陆首个社会工作课程。但是只有少部分毕业生毕业之后继续从事这个领域的工作。

Professor Li Zhiying from Beijing Normal University has researched trends in the industry. The result is depressing: Almost one tenth left within 6 months. Over 85 percent left within a year. Only 4 out of 70 fresh graduates continued for over a year.
北京师范大学教授李志英研究了这个行业的趋势。结果是令人沮丧的：将近十分之一的人在6个月内离开。超过85%的人在一年之内离开。70名应届毕业生中只有4人维持一年以上。

Li Zhiying, professor of Institute of History, Beijing Normal University, said, "The main reason is there is no regular mechanism for payment-raises. You never know when the next payment raise is going to happen."
北京师范大学历史系教授李志英指出：“主要原因是没有工资提升的规律性机制。你永远不知道下次升工资是什么时候。”

Professor Li says money is not the only factor. In 2009, Shanghai offered 100 thousand a year for to recruit social workers. Hundreds of people signed up for the interview. But the "lucky" applicant who got the offer left after two months.
李教授表示，金钱并不是唯一的因素。2009年，上海提供年薪10万元来招聘社工。好几百人参加了面试。但是那名“幸运的”求职者在拿到这份工作两个月后就离开了。

Li Zhiying said, "Those who have better education, value their social status. It matters whether they will be respected in society. Social workers, especially those receiving higher education, want to know how far they can advance, where their job will ultimately take them. "
李志英称：“那些受过良好教育的人很重视他们的社会地位。这关系到他们是否会在社会上受到尊重。社会工作者，尤其是那些接受高等教育的人都想知道他们能有多大进步，那里的工作最终能带给他们什么。”

Despite the long hours, low pay, and not much recognition from society, these social workers are sticking with it.
尽管工作时间长，工资低，没有大受社会的认可，这些社工一直在继续坚持工作。

Wu Yang, a social worker in Xicheng District, Beijing, said, "Many of my colleagues hang on because they believe in the good deed, and agree with the value. That’s the only reason."
Wu Yang，北京西城区的一名社工称：“我的很多同事坚持干下去是因为他们相信善举，认同这种价值观。这是唯一的原因。”

The passion they have is worth applauding, but whether other young people follow their path is still an open question.
他们的热情值得称赞，但是其他年轻人是否会走他们的路仍然是一个有争论的问题。