Firms keep workers for the social good

While the global economic slowdown has resulted in mass job-cutting, Premier Wen Jiabao has urged Chinese enterprises to shoulder their corporate social responsibilities by doing their best to keep employment at high levels.

Wen made such remarks when visited Chongqing at the end of last year, and highlighted the policy again in the government work report to the 11th National People's Congress, which has received active responses from Chinese corporations.

Earlier this year, under encouragement from local government, more than 200 Shanghai-based companies gathered to announce that they would not cut any jobs to cope with the business crisis.

In Zhejiang, a hub of Chinese private enterprises, nearly 200 members of the province's entrepreneurs association released an open letter in January, promising that they would not lay off workers.

Some Shanxi-based privately owned companies, such as the Meijin Group, Antai Group and Haixin Group, also announced that they would strengthen their efforts on fulfilling their social responsibility, especially by stabilizing labor relations.

A spokesman for Shanxi Meijin Group said that in preparing to leave such vast labor resources unused, the company had implemented better job trainings for laborers.

"Currently, for a company, it was time to invest in human resources," the spokesman said.

Many experts say that in the midst of economic crisis, companies should show their confidence in long-term development by keeping employment high.

"At the most difficult time, a company's behavior as a responsible corporate citizen will not only contribute to the society but also greatly enhance its public reputation and brand value in the market," said Zheng Jian, an analyst with domestic human resources company Zhilian Recruiting.

Government encouragement and support also drive corporations to avoid cutting jobs.

Stable employment

"With enhanced government support and companies' efforts, China can also better manage to maintain a stable employment rate," said Wang Yunzhu of the Academy of Social Sciences in Shanxi province.

Statistics from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security show that in the first three quarters of last year, the country created 9.36 million new jobs and helped 4.09 million laid-off workers back to work.

According to the Shanghai Human Resources Consulting Association (SHRCA), that city's growth rate of employees in local companies would decrease by 0.5 percent in the first half of this year, compared with an increase of 13.4 percent in the same period in 2008.

Another report released by Zhilian Recruiting said over 50.1 percent of respondent employees said they increasingly worried about the impact of the global economic crisis on their careers.

"It is a testing time to corporate citizens whether they can shoulder their social responsibilities and work closely with their employees to go through the 'chilly winter'," said Zheng of Zhilian Recruiting.

The government is also using the global financial turmoil as an opportunity to balance talent structures around the nation.

"Compared to China's western and central regions, the impact of the global financial crisis is severer in the country's more developed cities," explained Chen Guangjin, an expert on employment issues with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. "Thus for China's central and western region, it would be a golden opportunity to attract talents."

(China Daily 03/16/2009 page10)