China unveils new measures to boost graduates' employment

China has introduced a slew of measures to boost the employment prospects of graduates in the country, including relaxing residency curbs, promoting multi-channel employment and facilitating the establishment of startups.

Residency curbs on the settlement of college graduates, vocational college graduates, and graduates from overseas institutions will be fully relaxed at provincial capitals and other cities, the Chinese Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said in a statement on Friday. The household registration process for graduates will be further simplified.

The country will also expand employment channels and provide insurance subsidies. Personnel in grassroots service projects who have passed the assessment of the grassroots units below the county level in remote areas can be selected and hired in the township institutions.

Small and micro enterprises that hire people who have been unemployed for two years after college graduation will be provided with social insurance subsidies, according to the regulation.

The scale of training and internship opportunities will be further expanded. The country will help arrange internship placements for college graduates and unemployed young people who need internship opportunities. Other subsidies will cover qualified graduates in secondary vocational schools, technical schools included.

In addition, the country will strengthen innovation and entrepreneurship, relax the conditions for applying for start-up loans, and encourage graduates to return to their hometowns to start their own businesses.

China is expected to see 8.34 million college graduates this year, 140,000 more than last year, according to the latest data.

Employment is highlighted in the 2019 government work report, in which the country decided to place the employment-first policy at a macroeconomic policy level for the first time.