Beijing, Aug 7 (IANS) Chinese people returning home after studying and working abroad are facing a difficult time finding jobs, and have managed to earn salaries of just 3,000-5,000 yuan ($470-$780) per month, a survey has found.

This number comes up to around 43 percent, the China Daily reported Tuesday, citing the survey published in the Workers' Daily.

The Workers' Daily with help from the EIC Group, one of China's largest education agencies, surveyed 7,800 Chinese who returned at the end of 2011.

More than 70 percent said they received monthly salaries lower than 10,000 yuan.

Around 2.2 million Chinese students studied abroad from 1978 till 2011. Since 2007, there has been a huge increase in returnees, and in 2011, 180,000 came back to China to work.