Government say over five million people work in the foot massage

Foot Massage / Reflexology offices are sprouting up all over China. In big cities, like Beijing, there are shops on many street corners, and foot massage / reflexology chain stores employ thousands of workers.

This mushrooming industry is producing thousands of new jobs for the blind, who traditionally in Asia have been trained to do massage.

The Chinese Government say that more than five million people work in the foot massage / reflexology trade.

Massage has traditionally been considered a profession for the blind in China, Japan and other Asian nations. Now the Chinese Government is encouraging the blind to take up massage / reflexology as an occupation that will allow them to live independently. Special schools have set up four-year programs, giving sightless students far more training than their sighted counterparts.