Employment and Innovation

During the Tenth Five-Year Plan, Beijing realized a transition from the basic living allowances system for laid-off workers to an unemployment insurance system. A relatively sound employment promotion policy system was in place, and a market-oriented employment mechanism was created.

During the Tenth Five-Year Plan, Beijing's employment scale was gradually enlarged, and the employment structure was optimized even more. Economic census data indicated that in 2003, there were 2.3 million and 4.75 million employees in the secondary and tertiary industries, with annual increases of 2.6 percent and 8.9 percent on average during the first four years of the Tenth Five-Year Plan.

About 600,000 community jobs were created. Assistance to the financially hindered and laid-off people was intensified. The employment transfer of 300,000 rural labourers was realized in the city, and the target of professional training for "a million people in three years" was surpassed. The registered unemployment rate in townships remained at a low level. The rate will be controlled to within 2.3 percent in 2006. Overall employment continued stable.