National Bureau of Statistics: China's urban survey unemployment rate can objectively reflect the real employment situation | situation | urban survey

The State Council Information Office held a press conference today on the operation of the national economy in May 2023. Fu Linghui, spokesperson for the National Bureau of Statistics and Director of the Department of Comprehensive Statistics of the National Economy, pointed out at the meeting that regarding employment statistics, China's employment statistics mainly rely on the labor force survey system of the National Bureau of Statistics. Since its establishment, China's labor force survey system has been continuously improved and perfected. The statistics of urban survey unemployment rates in China are scientifically standardized and in line with international standards, which can objectively reflect the employment situation in urban areas of China.

At the meeting, a reporter asked: How do you view the current employment situation? How to understand the continuous rise of youth survey unemployment rate. How was this statistical data obtained? Can it reflect the real situation of youth employment at present?

Fu Linghui introduced that firstly, the statistical methods of China's unemployment rate are scientific. According to the statistical standards of the International Labour Organization on employment and unemployment, China divides the population aged 16 and above into three categories: employment, unemployment, and non labor force. According to the standards of the International Labour Organization, the employed population refers to those who, during the survey reference period, usually one week, work for one hour or more in order to obtain labor remuneration or business income, and are temporarily unemployed due to vacation, temporary work stoppage, etc. These people are all considered employed. Unemployed population refers to those who have no job, are seeking employment in the near future, and are able to work immediately. These people have the ability and willingness to work, which belongs to the unemployed population. Non labor force refers to individuals aged 16 and above who are neither employed nor unemployed. For example, people who lack the willingness to work or have lost the ability to work are not included in the scope of employment and unemployment statistics. For example, the young people mentioned earlier, some students who are not looking for jobs or have no willingness to work, will not be included in the unemployment rate.

"Just now we said that the total number of young people is over 96 million, but in reality, only about 33 million are actually looking for jobs, and the rest belong to non labor force. There are also some people who, due to taking care of their families, do not participate in the labor market and are not included in labor force statistics, which is an internationally recognized standard. The calculation of the unemployment rate is calculated by dividing the number of unemployed people by the number of employed people plus the number of unemployed people." Fu Linghui said.

Secondly, China's labor force survey is rigorous and standardized. Earlier, we talked about how to calculate and investigate, and how does the data come from? Mainly obtained through labor force surveys to collect basic data on employment situation. From the perspective of survey methods, the National Bureau of Statistics conducts a labor force survey on 340000 households nationwide every month. These households are randomly selected from urban and rural areas in 31 provinces of China. All permanent and temporary buildings, such as sheds, that are inhabited within the scope of village committees or neighborhood committees are within the survey sample range, and the sampling design has good representativeness. Out of 340000 households, approximately 250000 are extracted from urban areas, while approximately 90000 are extracted from rural areas.

From the perspective of survey objects, the population living in the survey time point among the selected households should be surveyed regardless of the region, registered residence, age and other restrictions. The respondents include all groups, including employees of small and micro enterprises, self-employed businesses, and flexible employees, including both local registered residence registered population and migrant population, such as migrant workers and those looking for work in cities. From the survey content, there are both survey items set according to the employment and unemployment statistical standards recommended by the International Labour Organization, as well as survey items set according to China's national conditions to reflect the employment situation of key groups such as college graduates and migrant workers. From the perspective of survey methods, the National Bureau of Statistics organizes investigators to use handheld electronic terminal devices to collect real-time data at home every month, and directly reports it to the National Bureau of Statistics through the network.

Thirdly, the urban survey unemployment rate in China objectively reflects the employment situation. Urban areas in China are the main regions for non-agricultural employment, and there is a strong correlation between non-agricultural employment and economic changes. Therefore, for a long time, China has mainly released monthly urban survey unemployment rate data. From an international perspective, non-agricultural employment is receiving more attention. From the situation in China, migrant workers are an important force in employment, and the vast majority of migrant workers are employed in non-agricultural areas in urban areas, which is included in the urban survey unemployment rate. The impact of migrant workers returning home is also reflected in urban survey unemployment rates. For example, if migrant workers who work along the coast return to their hometowns in the central and western regions and continue to work in nearby counties, urban areas, or towns, they will also be included in the urban unemployment rate survey; If he returns to the countryside, it may lead to a decrease in urban employment and have an impact on the urban survey unemployment rate, but this part will be reflected in the rural survey unemployment rate. Rural areas in China mainly rely on agricultural employment, and it is common to operate rural household contracted land. The unemployment rate is lower than in urban areas.

Fu Linghui pointed out that overall, the urban survey unemployment rate in China will not underestimate the national unemployment situation and can objectively reflect the real employment situation. From a historical perspective, China's urban survey unemployment rate data also objectively reflects changes in urban employment. For example, at the beginning of 2020, due to the impact of the epidemic, the pressure on urban employment suddenly increased, and the urban survey unemployment rate significantly increased. With the introduction of various stable economic policies, the economic operation has gradually stabilized, and the surveyed unemployment rate has gradually fallen.

Fu Linghui said that based on this year's situation, the overall economic operation has recovered and improved, while the urban survey unemployment rate has generally fallen. However, it should also be noted that the structural contradiction in employment is still quite prominent, and some groups have a high unemployment rate, which is objectively reflected in the unemployment rate survey. The statistical methods, objects, and standards of urban survey unemployment rate in China are in line with international standards and can objectively reflect the overall situation of the survey unemployment rate.