By the end of 2004, there were about 50 million people flexibly employed in China, accounting for about 18 percent of the total of urban employees. But their status of social security allows of no optimism, only less than 30 percent of them have participated in basic endowment insurance and less than 10 percent in basic medical insurance. This was learned on January 8 from "The Topic Report on China's Flexible Employment" released for the first time by the Chinese Ministry of Labor and Social Security.

It is reported that flexible employees mainly include professionals, household helpers, seasonal and hour workers. Because flexible employees are relatively decentralized and started late in participating in social insurance, therefore, most of them do not enjoy any social security, thus giving rise to a series of social problems.

An official with the Ministry of Labor and Social Security indicated that the State should give flexible employees policy support and preferential treatment in the aspects of tax reduction or exemption, money supply and employment services. In the future when the coverage of endowment insurance and medical insurance is expanded, flexible employees should be taken as the main objects, efforts should be made to improve policies as soon as possible and to explore new ways of management and service.

By People's Daily Online