The estimated monthly salary employers would offer to fresh college graduates in 2010 was 2,694 yuan ($404), 155 yuan lower than the 2,849 yuan expected, People's Daily reported citing a consulting firm's survey.

College graduates seek vacancies during a job fair in Changchun, Northeast China's Jilin province, in November. [File photo/China Daily]

The expectation of 2,849 yuan is the same as it was in 2008.

"It will be hard to see a remarkable rise in college graduates' pay this year, which will stay almost the same as that of last year," said Chu Zhaohui, researcher of China National Institute for Education Research.

"If price hike was taken into consideration, we can generally interpret the pay as a decline," Chu said.

Another survey released on Dec 13 about college graduates' pay in the Yangtze River Delta region showed fresh graduates' average salary was 2,667 yuan, 298 yuan higher than the country's average level of 2,369 yuan.

"But consumption in these cities in the Yangtze River Delta region is also much higher," Chu said.

While the number of college graduates grows rapidly, skilled migrant workers are in short supply.

"A lot of companies require their applicants to have work experiences, which fresh graduates don't have," said a Zhejiang based factory manager with the surname Zhang.

Zhang said because of a shortage of skilled workers, factories have to raise the salary they offered to hire people. And some migrant workers can earn more than 2,500 yuan a month, a sum that is higher than what many college graduates can earn.