Background

China’s national system of public employment services (PES) supports the implementation of a full employment policy framework. The main objective of the PES is to match labour supply in rural and urban areas with labour demands of enterprises and industries.

The Chinese PES system engages a variety of public institutions and non-governmental employment agencies operating in partnership with the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) and the other levels of government. The participation of various providers has enabled the Government to expand provision across all levels and to cover urban and rural areas. In 2014, grass-roots level service provisions covered 98 per cent of the sub-districts, 69 per cent of townships, and 95 per cent of the communities. By the end of 2015, the PES system had 12,000 employment service centres nationwide, with a total staff of 200,000 employees, and there were 33,000 additional access points to support grass-roots level provision. The MOHRSS estimates that the PES system covers 30 per cent of the job market in China, while the rest of the market is served by a variety of non-governmental employment services agencies.

The PES system is organized as a decentralized structure forming a five-level system, comprising the national, province, municipality, county and grass-roots (townships, sub-districts and communities) levels. Given China’s scale and diversity, there are visible regional variations in the implementation and arrangements of employment services. Currently, there is a wide variety of public institutions providing employment services, which include: centres for employment services, career guidance, job centres, vocational training, employment services “platforms”, and service points, to mention a few. Each of them provides a specific array of services and targets different groups of the population.

The national PES system is undergoing a process of reform, and integrating the different institutions and administrative structures involved in the delivery of employment services, career guidance, skills training, and social security aids across all levels of government.

Objective

• To take stock of existing knowledge and experience on public employment services at country and global levels
• To exchange ideas and research products on public employment services undertaken in China and in the ILO
• To make policy proposals on how to deliver all-round public employment services in China

Topics for discussion

• New employment challenge: in the new normal of the economy, economic restructuring, challenge of labour market and employment services
• International experiences on PES in different country contexts
• Proposals on how to improve PES system and policy recommendations that customize to Chinese context

Participants

• China officials from MOHRSS, local governments and employment service agencies
• ILO officials and experts
• International experts