China's job market saw stable growth in first three quarters of 2023, ministry says

A job fair for college graduates is held at the Hefei Sports Center in Anhui province on May 29. WANG YISHENG/FOR CHINA DAILY

China's job market showed stable growth in first three quarters of the year, with 10.22 million people landing jobs in urban areas during that time, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said on Thursday morning.

According to the ministry, the nation's surveyed unemployment rate was around 5 percent in September, falling by 0.2 percentage point from the previous month.

In addition, about 42,000 college graduates have been recruited for grassroots positions nationwide as of September. Of those graduates, 4,996 took positions in counties with harsh environments and weaker economic conditions to help contribute to the areas' development.

The ministry said that it has made an effort to help find jobs for laid-off workers and people who have had difficulties finding work due to their health conditions or lack of skills. As of late September, about 3.96 million people from the former category and 1.29 million from the latter successfully landed jobs.

Organized vocational skills training has also been a key part of the ministry's efforts over the past nine months. It said that from January to September, it organized rounds of vocational training campaigns for college graduates and migrant workers, with 8.99 million training vouchers being handed out during that period.