Korea JoongAng Daily:

The fourth national economic census showed a decrease in employment in the secondary sector and an increase in the tertiary sector, with manufacturing, construction, and wholesale and retail industries being the largest employers. What employment distribution trends were revealed in the fifth national economic census? And what changes have occurred in China's job market since the COVID-19 pandemic? Thank you.

Kang Yi:

I would like to invite Ms. Wang to answer your questions.

Wang Guanhua:

Your questions are related to the changes in China's job market over the five years. We know that employment is the most basic component of the people's well-being, affecting the lives of tens of thousands of households, and is also related to the overall socioeconomic development. In recent years, various regions and departments have deeply implemented the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, thoroughly implemented the employment-first strategy, strengthened the policy orientation of prioritizing employment, and increased assistance to disadvantaged groups. Compared with the fourth national economic census, the number of employees in the secondary and tertiary industries in China continued to increase, and there were some new changes in the employment structure. The capacity of new industries and new business formats to create jobs has been enhanced, providing important support for economic development and improvements in people's living standards. The main characteristics are as follows:

First, if we look at the total numbers, employment in the secondary and tertiary industries is steadily increasing. In recent years, despite facing multiple risks and challenges, employment in the secondary and tertiary industries has continued to increase thanks to economic recovery, improved economic structure, and policies to stabilize employment. At the end of 2023, legal entities in China's second and tertiary industries employed 429 million people, up by 45.75 million compared to the end of 2018, representing a growth rate of 11.9%. Increased employment in the secondary and tertiary industries has created favorable conditions for maintaining overall stability in employment. For the five years from 2019 to 2023, the average surveyed urban unemployment rates in China were 5.2%, 5.6%, 5.1%, 5.6% and 5.2%, respectively. Although there were some fluctuations over the years, since 2023, with economic recovery and development, overall employment has been generally stable.

Second, from a structural perspective, employment in the secondary industry has decreased, while employment in the tertiary industry has increased. The main reason is industrial restructuring. In recent years, China's industrial structure has been continuously adjusted, and the proportion of the tertiary industry, or the service industry, in the gross domestic product has been increasing. A key characteristic of the service industry is its strong ability to create employment. Therefore, the industrial structure adjustment has also brought about corresponding changes in employment structure, which is in line with the general principles of economic and social development. According to the data from the fifth national economic census, at the end of 2023, legal entities in the secondary industry employed 164 million people, a decrease of 8.26 million compared to the end of 2018, or down by 4.8%. However, employment in the tertiary industry reached 265 million, an increase of 54.01 million, up by 25.6%.

At the same time, we should also be aware that technological progress and changes in social division of labor are also important factors affecting the changing employment in the secondary and tertiary industries. In recent years, China's industrial production efficiency has greatly improved. In the context of the advanced and intelligent development of the manufacturing industry, many industrial enterprises have improved their production efficiency through intelligent transformation, which has also led to adjustments in the workforce. At the same time, with the development of the internet and refinements in the social division of labor, some industrial production processes, such as design and testing, have also been separated and become part of the tertiary industry. Some employees in the secondary industry have transitioned to the tertiary industry, which has also brought about changes in the employment structure.

Third, the emerging service industry has provided new opportunities for expanding employment. In the five years, new business forms and models in the service industry had continued to grow in China. Emerging service industries, such as technology services, information services and business services, had developed rapidly, playing an increasingly important role in job creation. According to the data from the fifth national economic census, by the end of 2023, the development of the digital economy had led to rapid development of information services and an increase in the number of employees in related industries. The number of employees in the information transmission, software and information technology services increased by 5.07 million compared to the end of 2018. At the same time, with industrial transformation and upgrading, the demand for business services continues to grow, which has also led to an increase in the number of people working in those industries. By the end of 2023, the number of employees in the leasing and business services industry increased by 16.17 million compared to the end of 2018. At the same time, we should also be aware that with improvements in quality and effectiveness of technological innovation, businesses are more active in R&D and innovation. As a result, the number of people working in scientific research and the technical service industry had increased by 5.17 million over the five years.

Overall, in the five years, employment in the secondary and tertiary industries steadily increased. Against the backdrop of industrial restructuring, there had been new changes in the composition of the workforce, which was in line with the general principles of socioeconomic development. Of course, we should also be aware that structural employment contradictions are still relatively prominent, and some groups still face some difficulties and challenges in employment. Looking forward, we will continue to prioritize promoting high-quality and full employment, strengthen employment support policies for key groups, and make every effort to stabilize employment, benefit the people and promote development. Thank you.