China Says Get Married Or Get Fired

A Nation’s Self-Inflicted Demographic Crisis and the Desperate Measures to Reverse It

By Marisa Nguyen-Minh Ha

Beijing, China –This is what happens in nations run by men who at one point in history encouraged all families to have one child and made it culturally clear that a boy child was preferred and then said nothing as countless girl children in China were slaughtered. This same government is now confused as to why there are not enough women for men to procreate with, as if that were their only requirement in life. In a desperate attempt to reverse a self-inflicted demographic crisis, China is now moving to a three-child policy due to its rapid population decline.

China’s population has fallen for three consecutive years, a reality the government is scrambling to correct after decades of policies that created a deep sex imbalance. Marriage rates have plummeted, with 2023 seeing a 20% drop in marriages compared to the previous year, marking the lowest numbers since the government began keeping records in 1986. The government’s response? Instead of addressing the root causes of declining marriage and birth rates—such as economic hardship, sex inequality, and a growing resistance among women to traditional roles—it has resorted to coercion and threats.

A chilling memo that spread on Chinese social media has revealed that companies are now pressuring employees to marry or face termination. The memo, directed at workers aged 28 to 58, stated: “If you cannot get married and start a family within three quarters, the company will terminate your labor contract.” Among those receiving the notice were even divorced workers, underscoring the desperation of a nation attempting to force its way out of a population crisis of its own making.

China’s current dilemma is a direct consequence of the One-Child Policy and the subsequent societal preference for male children. For years, the government turned a blind eye as millions of female fetuses were aborted or abandoned, leading to a stark sex imbalance. Now, with fewer women of childbearing age, the state is frantically reversing course—first introducing a two-child policy and now promoting a three-child limit. But policies cannot erase decades of cultural and systemic damage.

Adding to the growing resistance against traditional family expectations is the rise of the “6B4T” movement and the increasing adoption of the “4B” philosophy among young Chinese women. The 6B4T movement, inspired by South Korea’s 4B feminist movement, rejects marriage, childbirth, dating, and relationships with men due to concerns over gender-based violence and systemic misogyny. Many young women in China see marriage not as a partnership but as a life sentence of unpaid labor, domestic servitude, and potential abuse—all while the government does nothing to address these concerns. Instead of improving conditions for women, authorities are attempting to enforce forced marriage and childbirth, further alienating an entire generation.

This misguided strategy of pressuring women into marriage and childbearing is likely to backfire spectacularly. With companies threatening to fire unmarried employees, the government risks losing an entire segment of its workforce. If women refuse to marry under coercion, and the government continues to erode their rights, what will be left of China’s labor force? The irony is inescapable: a nation that once aggressively sought to eliminate its female population is now grappling with the repercussions of its actions, attempting to dictate the lives of the very women they once deemed disposable.

But how are women supposed to get married if the state itself advocated for the elimination of girls for decades? How does China expect to correct an imbalance it created by force with yet more force? Forced marriage and procreation are not solutions—they are symptoms of a government that refuses to take accountability for its past mistakes. As young women push back against oppressive policies and outdated gender expectations, China is learning the hard way that some wounds, once inflicted, cannot be easily healed.