A hundred million Chinese had work injury insurance by November,
including 24.73 million migrant workers, the Ministry of Labor and
Social Security announced on Thursday.
Coverage had grown an annual average of 18.18 million since the
end of 2003 when it was 45.75 million.
China's work injury insurance fund received 10 billion yuan
(US$1.28 billion) in revenues in 2006.
In May, the government launched a nationwide, three-year safety
program to bring all migrant workers in high risk sectors -
including coal mining and construction - under the work injury
insurance system.
Work injury insurance covered four million coal miners by
November, with all the migrant workers insured in the 103
state-owned key coal mines and other large and medium sized coal
mines.
The ministry will continue pushing for wider insurance coverage
in the mining, construction, manufacturing and catering sectors in
2007.
A total of 36 million migrant workers will be covered by the
work injury insurance in 2007, said an official with the
ministry.
(Xinhua News Agency December 29, 2006)