The issue of migrant workers is a divisive one in China's capital.  Most Beijingers are well aware of the need for workers from the countryside to do the jobs that they are not willing to do. 

Migrant workers are the force behind Beijing's rapid development over the last couple of decades.  Nowhere was that more evident than in the run-up to the Olympics, when sporting venues and transport facilities sprang up at astonishing speed. 

On the flip side, there is still widespread prejudiced against migrant workers.  Many Beijing residents often see them as rude and uneducated, and perceive them as second class citizens.

That issue was brought to the fore once again by a new government policy aimed at giving the children of migrant workers access to compulsory education at public schools in Beijing. While the aim of the move is to give equal education opportunities to all, some in Beijing question whether it's practical to introduce a further burden into the city's already strained education system.