In China, non-agricultural workers registered in farming villages have been driving economic growth in major and regional cities. Thus, to examine the effects of workers' activities, we interviewed residents of villages on the outskirts of Wuzhong City in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, where many people commute to work. Here, we confirmed the transition to non-agricultural work since China's market-opening economic reforms. In addition, we find that many non-agricultural workers were engaged in temporary work, with no evidence of improvement in their income stability. Though most of their income came from non-agricultural work, the inherent instability means they obtained security of living from agriculture. However, we also find that steady non-agricultural work was helping to increase in agricultural income.
