Do minorities benefit from social networks? In this paper, we study this question using the historical example of China's first modern bureaucratic organization, the Chinese Maritime Customs Service. Drawing on newly digitized personnel records from 1876-1911, we first show that the Chinese clerks employed by the service were predominantly Cantonese. Using the plausibly exogenous transfers of clerks across stations, we then estimate that a non-Cantonese (minority) clerk benefited significantly from meeting at least one colleague from his same province and dialect. Such connections led to faster promotion and a 5.6% salary increase, with even stronger effects when meeting a clerk who was either senior or of high quality.

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3 December 2025     Paper Number CEPDP2138

Download PDF - Minority bureaucrats' networks and career progression: evidence from the Chinese maritime customs service

This CEP discussion paper is published under the centre's Labour programme.

This publication comes under the following theme: Labour market inequalities: Causes and cures