New policies to stabilize and expand employment are led by a year extension of one-half payments toward work-related injury and unemployment insurance, which were to expire April 30, it was announced at an Aug 17 press conference.

Reduced or exempt costs for the disabled to contribute to employment security funds will be prolonged to Dec 31, 2022, said Guo Liyun, deputy director of the Human Resources & Social Security Bureau. Furthermore:

The role of investment and foreign trade in stimulating employment will gain backing and the connection between employment policies and industrial, fiscal, consumption, and financial policies will be strengthened.

Press conference [Photo by Chen Jiazhe / Zhuhai Media Group]

Zhuhai will subsidize the financing of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises to keep open major channels of employment. Eligibility of a subsidy for business incubation carriers will be extended to two years. The maximum quota for individual entrepreneurship loans will be doubled to 600,000 yuan ($92,580) and that of petty consumer loans quadrupled to 200,000 yuan ($30,860), which are among the highest in the province.

More employment at state-owned enterprises and residential communities will be available to university graduate students, and a government-university-enterprise alliance will be established to attract more graduates to work in Zhuhai.

Unemployed individuals will be offered skill training, job recommendations, and other services. Public welfare jobs will be created in rural areas and for those with living difficulties in case people return to poverty due to unemployment.

Hong Kong and Macao youth at the Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Plant will receive a monthly living allowance of up to 1,000 yuan ($154). Those who work or start a business in the city will receive the same employment, entrepreneurship, and rent subsidies as Zhuhai residents. Their projects will be exempted from rent and property management fees for up to three years at the Guangdong Zhuhai Public Entrepreneurship Incubation (Training) Base in Xiangzhou District. 

In addition, Zhuhai will organize dedicated recruitment of Cantonese cuisine experts and self-assessment of skilled talents and establish a credit management platform for housekeepers. The plan encourages skills training that connect enterprises with vocational and technical schools and colleges.

Youth farmers and graduates are encouraged to rejuvenate rural areas. New-type agricultural business entities, agricultural managers, and other high-quality farmers are welcome.

Third-party institutions are encouraged to conduct online and offline recruitment and arrange dedicated trains and buses for immigrant workers. More skilled and urgently needed workers will be sought.

The new policies come in response to normalized epidemic prevention and control, new business modes, and construction of the Modernized & Internationalized Zhuhai Special Economic Zone and Guangdong-Macao In-depth Cooperation Zone.