With uncertain economic prospects abroad, the possibility of a jobs slump in China are on the minds of many policymakers in China. On March 1st, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security announced that ensuring a healthy employment rate will be a top priority for a nation that is seeing more of its rural workers migrate to urban areas.
China is expecting 7 million new college graduates this year, 200,000 more versus 2011. Taking into account both urban and rural areas, it’s estimated that 25 million people in China will be on the hunt for a job in 2012. With a gloomy global economy threatening to hurt economic prospects in China, policymakers here are making a concerted effort to keep unemployment low and to create more jobs.
On March 1st, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security announced that ensuring a
healthy employment rate will be a top priority for a nation that is seeing more of its
rural workers migrate to urban areas.
Yin Weimin, Minister of Ministry of Human Resources &Social Security, said, "Our priority is jobs! We will focus on keeping a stable and low unemployment rate while improving the working standards of industries which employ a large number of people."
The ministry says, when China considers macroeconomic policies this year and if restructuring takes place in certain industries, keeping or creating jobs will be at the forefront of policy formulation.
21 ministries and commissions in China have set employment targets. The National Development and Reform Commission, China’s top economic planning body for example is staging a strong push to further invest in China’s central and western regions, as well as boosting employment opportunities for the country’s ethnic minorities. The Ministry of Education meanwhile is working to find more ways to help new college grads land jobs upon graduation.
