BEIJING -- For Zou Bin, 29, the journey from a remote village to the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, the prestigious venue for annual sessions of top legislature, has been one of perseverance and dedication.

Ahead of the third session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), Zou, a construction quality director by trade and NPC deputy by passion, visited an airport construction site in central China's Hunan Province to listen to the concerns of migrant workers.

Since becoming a lawmaker seven years ago, Zou has spent three days every month at construction sites, talking with workers and recording their appeals, and submitted more than 10 suggestions, mostly focused on migrant workers' rights.

FROM BRICKLAYER TO CRAFTSMAN

Raised in an impoverished mountainous village in central China's Hunan Province, Zou started to learn bricklaying in 2011 at construction sites in the provincial capital Changsha, following his father's footsteps to become a migrant worker.

Unlike others who work for speed, he pursued perfection, often redoing walls to meet his own high standards.

His dedication led him to professional excellence. In 2015, he competed in the WorldSkills Competition in Brazil, winning the Medallion for Excellence in bricklaying and making history for China in this field.

Soon afterward, Zou was hired as a project inspector of the Fortune 500 firm China State Construction Engineering Corporation, leading teams and mentoring fellow bricklayers.

Brick by brick, Zou paved his way not only to a true craftsman among construction workers, but also to a grassroots NPC deputy.

VOICE THAT MAKES DIFFERENCE

In 2018, Zou was elected an NPC deputy, the youngest in the Hunan delegation. The then 23-year-old has since been committed to speaking out for migrant workers, a nearly 300-million-strong group in China.

"I was a little excited at first, but then the weight of responsibility made it hard for me to sleep," Zou said. "I cherish the opportunity to be a voice for people like me."

Zou's first proposal to China's legislative session called for better technical education and labor protections for construction workers, a cause that has since become his focus as an NPC deputy.

His efforts paid off. Authorities responded quickly, rolling out large-scale vocational training programs since that year and putting in place the country's first ever regulation on timely wage payments in 2019.

In just one year after the regulation took effect, authorities helped 643,000 migrant workers recover about 6.4 billion yuan (about 893 million U.S. dollars) in overdue salaries and other compensation.

TRANSFORMATION OF MIGRANT WORKERS

Zou was reelected as an NPC deputy in 2023. He became one of the 56 migrant workers that sat in the 14th NPC. The number marks a significant increase from 2008, when three migrant workers first made it into the country's national legislature.

Much more poised and confident, the ardent advocate for migrant workers set out a higher vision in his new term from 2023 to 2028 -- helping migrant workers become professional skilled workers.

His efforts aligned with China's push to empower migrant workers.

According to a guideline issued in 2024, China aims to foster approximately 2,000 national-level master artisans and 60,000 provincial- and city-level master artisans by 2035.

Calling himself "a true beneficiary" of the country's rigorous reforms over the past years, Zou said: "This is an era in which everyone has the opportunity to shine."

At this year's legislative session, Zou prepared a suggestion for further upgrading traditional industries and improving the skills training system for workers, aiming to turn industrious blue-collar craftsmen into skillful technicians.

"I hope that more migrant workers can have a stage to improve themselves," Zou said.

Over the years, Zou has witnessed changes in policies related to migrant workers and improvements of their work and lives. Their problems, such as medical care and schooling for their children, are being addressed step by step.

"I have witnessed real changes," he said. "My goal remains the same -- to make migrant workers a respectable group with a sense of accomplishment and dignity."