According to the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, by the end of June, there is an overall of 1.96 million laid-off workers in state-owned enterprises, dropping by 0.64 million as compared to that of last year, and their basic living security has been fulfilled.

In recent years, as the laid-off workers leave the center and get re-employed one in the wake of the other, the number has decreased from over 7 million in peak time to less than 2 million. Currently, of the 1.96 million, 1.22 million have entered re-employment service center and signed contract, and those who have signed the contract have all received basic living expenses on time and in full, and are withheld of social insurance fee for them as well.

The redistribution of surplus workers in state-owned enterprises has been carried out steadily. By the end of June, the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, Ministry of Finance and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council have jointly examined and approved the re-organization and redistribution general plan of 31 central enterprises to separate secondary lines of business from core business, involving 1,401 re-organized units, and redistribution of 214,000 surplus workers. Hu Xiaoyi, spokesman of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security stated that, next step, the relevant departments would continue to fulfill the work for the laid-off workers from state-owned enterprises to leave the re-employment center, thereby straightening out the labor relationships as well as shutting down bankrupt enterprises and settling down their workers.

By People's Daily Online