Vice-Premier Huang Ju called Tuesday for creating a better environment for the employment of jobless people and the re-employment of laidoff workers from state enterprises, by further improving employment policies and better implementing them.

The pressure of employment remains huge, Huang stressed. He urged all localities to try hard to create more job opportunities for the jobless and laidoff.

Huang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee Political Bureau, made the remarks at an inter-ministry conference to hear reports by officials who were sent to investigate the issue of employment and re-employment in the country.

Top priority should be given to job training and more funds should be invested for the purpose, the vice premier said. He said that the employment work could be combined with programs to fight poverty and maintain social stability.

In late October, shortly after a national working conference on re-employment, the central government dispatched 13 supervision teams to check the implementation of the policies on employment and re-employment in 25 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities as well as in the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.

According to the reports of these teams, all the local areas have stepped up efforts to help the jobless and laidoff, despite of the outbreak of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) in parts of the country.

(Xinhua News Agency November 19, 2003)