The State Council has admitted that the outbreak of SARS has
worsened China's already "grave'' employment situation.
In
a circular released Wednesday, the government said: "Uncertainties
for economic development caused by the outbreak of SARS (severe
acute respiratory syndrome) has brought about new difficulties and
had negative effects on employment. It is challenging the
realization of this year's employment targets.''
The State Council said local governments must take immediate action
and try to keep the jobless rate in their respective areas below
4.5 per cent of the working population this year.
"Governments at various levels should think of employment promotion
as an essential part of keeping society stable,'' the State Council
said.
The latest official statistics indicate that 7.75 million people
were registered unemployed in urban areas as of the end of March,
750,000 more than that at the same time last year. The registered
unemployment rate was 4.1 per cent.
The number of unemployed is expected to continue to increase.
The State Council urged labour and social security departments to
include the development of the labour market in their overall local
economic and social development plans, with the aim of creating
jobs.
The SARS outbreak has badly hit industries such as civil aviation,
tourism, catering and taxis.
The State Council said businesses in SARS-hit areas should not fire
employees at will, while local governments should help those whose
living conditions have fallen below the minimum level required due
to SARS.
Experts said they were confident that the government can keep the
jobless rate under 4.5 per cent despite the spread of SARS.
"China has made significant progress in fighting SARS and this is
encouraging for economic development and job creation,''said Yang
Yiyong, deputy secretary of China Society of Labour.
China's economy should grow by at least 7 per cent this year, Yang
said. About 7 million jobs should be available in urban areas, he
predicted.
At
the beginning of this year, the government drew up plans to create
9.5 million jobs in urban areas and keep the registered
unemployment rate below 4.5 per cent. The jobless rate was 4 per
cent last year.
An
official surnamed Zhang from the Ministry of Labour and Social
Security said that, in the long run, the employment situation is
"grave'' in the world's most populous country, which has a
population of more than 1.29 billion.
Zhang said the supply of labour will greatly overtake demand over
the next few years.
Statistic from Zhang's ministry indicate that 22 million to 23
million workers in urban areas will be looking for a job during the
next three or four years, with 8 million or 9 million jobs expected
to be on offer.
"Moreover, there are about 17 million surplus labourers in rural
areas and they have made the employment problem more difficult,"
Zhang said.
(China Daily May 23, 2003)
