A job seeker (R front) fills in a form for employment at a job fair in Harbin, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, March 18, 2023. More than 500 on-line and off-line recruiting events have been scheduled during this job fair, the largest of its kind in recent years held in the province, offering over 115,000 vacant positions in total. (Photo:Xinhua)

With an overall improvement in its economic performance, China has the conditions and the basis to achieve its goals this year under its employment-first policy, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said on Monday.

"The employment situation has gradually improved and largely remains stable thanks to a smooth shift in the COVID-19 response and effective policies to stabilize the economy," Chen Yongjia, an official of the ministry, told a press conference.

The expansion of jobs and the improvement of labor quality will help promote consumption as well as the transformation and upgrading of enterprises, thus bolstering rapid economic development, analysts noted.

The government's work report set a target this year of creating 12 million new jobs and a surveyed unemployment rate of 5.5 percent.

First-quarter GDP grew a better-than-expected 4.5 percent year-on-year, with employment remaining stable. 

In the first three months, 2.97 million jobs were created, an increase of 120,000 year-on-year. In March, the national urban surveyed unemployment rate stood at 5.3 percent, down 0.5 percentage points year-on-year, according to Chen.

"So far, localities have held 58,000 spring hiring events to offer 38 million jobs, a year-on-year increase of 12 percent," Chen added.

Employment is the fundamental guarantor of people's livelihoods, as well as a fundamental role in expanding consumption and promoting economic growth, Li Changan, a professor at the Academy of China Open Economy Studies at the University of International Business and Economics, told the Global Times on Monday.

The improvement of labor quality has provided talent for national high-quality development, which will help the country's industrial upgrading, Li added.

However, amid a complex international environment and uncertainty of economic development, some people are still finding it difficult to secure a job. Some young people, especially college graduates, are still looking for suitable jobs, which are actual problems that need to be addressed, Chen noted.

The number of general college graduates is expected to reach a record high of 11.58 million this year, an increase of 820,000 year-on-year, official data showed.

In order to promote employment and entrepreneurship of college graduates, the ministry has rolled out 10 actions including subsidies for companies to hire more people, expanding the recruitment scale of the public sector, providing services for entrepreneurship and organizing on-site hiring events.

"Despite the overall rebound of employment, structural problems persist in the job market, especially for college students," Tian Yun, a veteran economic observer and former vice director of the Beijing Economic Operation Association, told the Global Times on Monday.

Tian said that China is transitioning to high-quality development, with a focus on the modern services industry. However, many college graduates don't have the right skills for this sector, and they expect higher salaries than the market offers. Therefore, education should keep up with market demand, Tian noted.

Li stressed the importance of the employment of college graduates, saying that they are the main force of the nation's innovation and technology advances.

"In addition to the efforts made by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, China should make use of its whole-of-society system strength, organizing other departments, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Commerce, to work together to provide professional training to graduate students, while giving encouragement and support to enterprises," Tian said.