Rail Transit Services Workers

How to become a Train Attendant

Official Chinese title (2022 occupational classification): 铁路列车乘务员

Also called: Carriage Attendant, Train Manager, Dining Car Manager, Train Duty Officer

Looks after passengers on trains, covering travel, safety, food and drink and cleanliness.

Main tasks

Checking tickets, helping passengers on and off, selling tickets on board and changing journeys
Arranging luggage and bedding and providing cleaning, food, drink and goods
Handling complaints and incidents and keeping order in carriages
Explaining travel rules and helping the train police find flammable, explosive and other dangerous items
Looking after carriage facilities and supplies
Following standard procedures and handling handovers between station and train

Ways in

Vocational majors: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: High Speed Railway Passenger Services (500113). Vocational major 500113 High Speed Railway Passenger Services (高速铁路客运服务), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Railway Logistics Management (530804). Vocational major 530804 Railway Logistics Management (铁路物流管理), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Logistics Management; Multimodal Transport Organisation and Management.; Secondary vocational school (中职) major: High Speed Railway Train Crew Services (700108). Vocational major 700108 High Speed Railway Train Crew Services (高速铁路乘务), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).

Pay · AI and this job

Median pay in China: CN¥63,600 a year (2025).
Middle half: CN¥47,800 to CN¥89,000. One in ten earn less than CN¥36,000 and one in ten more than CN¥121,300.
This is the figure for the mid group Transport, Warehousing, Logistics and Postal Services Workers, not for this job alone.
National figure: wage prices of enterprise employees from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) enterprise pay survey. The public sector and the self-employed are not covered.
Guangzhou only: median CN¥145,838 a year (2025), middle half CN¥123,724 to CN¥169,795.
This is the figure for the minor group Rail Transit Services Workers, not for this job alone.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

The census group Transport, Warehousing, Logistics and Postal Services Workers holds 6.05% of everyone employed in China; 14.2% of its workers are women (2020 Census).
32.9% are under 35, 58.1% are 35 to 54 and 9% are 55 or older. The middle age band is 40 to 44.
Census figures for the whole mid group (2020 long-form sample), not for this job alone.

Questions people ask

How do I become a Train Attendant?

Ways in include: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: High Speed Railway Passenger Services (500113); Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Railway Logistics Management (530804).

How much does a Train Attendant earn in China?

Across China, the median pay of enterprise employees is CN¥63,600 a year (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS), 2025). The public sector and the self-employed are not covered. It is the figure for the mid group Transport, Warehousing, Logistics and Postal Services Workers. In Guangzhou alone it is CN¥145,838 a year (2025).

Will AI change the work of a Train Attendant?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS): 2025 enterprise pay survey information: wage prices of enterprise employees by occupation mid group, and digital occupations (P10 to P90 annual CNY) (2025 (published 2026-07-08)), retrieved 5 October 2026
Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau: Guangzhou 2025 labour market wage prices (P10 to P90 annual CNY by occupation) (2025 (enterprise pay survey)), retrieved 4 October 2026
National Bureau of Statistics of China: China Population Census Yearbook 2020, long-form tables 4-6 and 4-7 (employed by occupation mid group, sex, age) (2020 Census long form (10% sample)), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

Sources: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition, public consultation draft), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Bureau of Statistics; Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, 2025 enterprise pay survey information; Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, 2025 labour market wage prices; National Bureau of Statistics of China (www.stats.gov.cn), 2020 Population Census yearbook; Ministry of Education, vocational education major profiles (2022 revision) and undergraduate major catalogue (2025); Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, national vocational qualifications catalogue (2021); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Figures processed by Peernovo. English text, translations and the matching of occupations to ISCO-08, majors, degree fields and qualifications by Peernovo.

Descriptions and tasks are Peernovo's own words, written from the facts in the Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition). Job titles and work types are the classification's own.

Updated 5 October 2026