BRIEF INTRODUCTION

I. The data in this chapter show the basic conditions of China’s labour economy, including the main data of labour statistics of the whole country and 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities under the direct leadership of the central government, such as the economically active population, number of the employed persons and staff and workers, number of persons employed in the urban and rural private enterprises and self-employed persons in industry and commerce, number of registered unemployed persons in urban areas, total wages and average wages of the staff and workers and the changes in index, etc.

II. There are three main sources for the data published in this chapter:

(1) Data on basic conditions of employment (tables 5-1 to 5-14), total wage bill of fully employed workers and staff (tables 5-19 to 5-28) are collected and tabulated in accordance with the Comprehensive Labour Statistics Reporting System, and Rural Social and Economic Survey of the National Bureau of Statistics. They are prepared and provided by the Department of Population, Social and Science Statistics, NBS.

(2) Data on the career services and the exchanges of labour force (tables 5-29) are collected in line with the Statistical Reporting System on Training and Employment and provided by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security.

(3) Data on the number of persons employed in the urban and rural private enterprises and self-employed persons in industry and commerce (tables 5-15 to 5-18) are collected through Statistical Reports on Basic Conditions of Urban and Rural Private Enterprises and Statistical Reports on Basic Conditions of Urban and Rural Individual Industrial and Commercial Business and provided by the State Administration for Industry and Commerce.

III. Coverage of statistics and survey methods:

(1) Coverage of statistics: The Comprehensive Labour Statistics Reporting System covers all independent accounting units. The Rural Social and Economic Survey covers all rural areas below township level in China. The Statistical Reporting System on Training and Employment covers all urban population of China. The Statistical Reports on Basic Conditions of Urban and Rural Private Enterprises and on Basic Conditions of Urban and Rural Individual Industrial and Commercial Business cover all employed persons in private enterprises and self-employed individuals of the whole society.

(2) Survey methodology: A complete enumeration and reporting from lower levels to higher levels is used in the Comprehensive Labour Statistics Reporting System. Statistics on training, employment, private enterprises and self-employed individuals are collected compiled on basis of administrative records.

IV. Since 1989, “China Labour Statistical Yearbook” has been jointly published by the National Bureau of Statistics and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, which provides more detailed data than those in this chapter.