China to further steady employment

The State Council laid out measures to stabilize China’s job situation in a document issued on Dec 24.

A stable job market will depend on policies supporting enterprises, according to the document. The current policies to reduce the premium rates of unemployment insurance and work-related injury insurance will remain effective until April 30, 2021.

The government will reduce financial burden for employers, and implement targeted cuts in the required reserve ratio to support private enterprises, as well as small and micro-sized ones.

To encourage enterprises to expand the domestic market, industrial parks in the country’s middle, western and northeastern regions should engage with industries in East China for industry transfer. This should be accompanied by lower logistics, electricity and energy costs.

Meanwhile, a cross-sector one-stop service platform should be established to support related enterprises to connect with nationwide e-commerce platforms and bulk-purchase projects across industries and regions.

Enterprises should be supported to retain employment relationship with their staff through negotiating over salaries, adjusting working hours, implementing work shifts and rests, and offering on-the-job training.

To create more new jobs, domestic demands will be further tapped, with work done to promote housekeeping, elderly care and day care, construction of tourism infrastructures, and consumption of automobiles, home appliances and consumer electronics.

In addition, investments in projects, such as restoration of old urban communities, and building of parking sites and the national logistics network, will create more jobs.

Measures to lower import tariffs and institutional costs will also be put on the table to stabilize foreign trade and employment.

New growth drivers, including 5G technology, artificial intelligence and industrial internet, will also be leveraged to create more jobs.

To encourage and embolden more people to join the entrepreneurship and innovation wave, the government should go ahead with reforms to streamline administration, improve services, and further optimize the business environment.

Attention should be paid to flexible employment and new job forms as well, and support policies and measures will be improved to guarantee services and protection of their rights and interests.

Targeted policies should tilt toward special groups. As for those with employment difficulties, aid programs should be in place to offer them public-good posts. Recruitment programs should be made public to hire rural teachers, doctors and social workers who will serve at the grassroots level, especially recent university graduates.

The government will also carry out large-scale occupational skills trainings, and provide basic unemployment benefits and living allowance, the document said.