Revista CIDOB d'Afers Internacionals (Sep 2003)
Employment in the post-WTO context in China: Economic and social outlook
Abstract
Since 2002, as a political regeneration occurs and businesspeople are recognised as guarantors of social stability due to their contribution to the reduction of unemployment, China is already showing the first signs of having initiated its journey in complying with the economic commitments entailed under the umbrella of the WTO. In this way, an ideal analytical framework is created for understanding one of the principal components of China today: its labour system. This article assesses how China can carry out an advantageous opening of its economy without adversely affecting the structural adjustment of its current labour distribution. It demonstrates that China’s entry into the WTO appears to be moreof a continuity than a historic division in the reform process. For this, it relates the area of labour with foreign dependence, macroeconomic development and the social fabric. The objective is to see if, indeed, the short- and long-term challenges can maintain theprincipal comparative advantage of China (the work factor) in a favourable position.
