China: Efforts to eliminate age discrimination in recruitment

(Labor and Social Affairs) - The Chinese government has launched initiatives to address age discrimination in recruitment.

Project manager David Li, 34, from the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, has not been promoted after five years at a tech company. This means the company does not appreciate him. His job may be at risk.

Fear of losing his job led him to regularly work 12-hour days in 2024 to prove to his superiors that he was still capable of doing overtime. On weekends, he was always available to take calls and handle unexpected work requests such as creating presentation slides.

In China, many workers find it difficult to get jobs after the age of 35 due to age discrimination. (Photo: AFP)

Mr. Li is not the only one feeling anxious at work. The insecurity of Chinese workers over the age of 35 is growing as the problem of “35 curse,” or age discrimination in hiring, becomes more serious amid the economic slowdown.

The Chinese government is taking the lead in addressing employers' age-biased recruitment policies by raising the age limit for civil service positions from 35 to 40, through adjusting the age for taking the civil service exam.

While career plateaus in China happen as early as age 35, this scenario does not happen in countries like Singapore, where the average age at which careers start to plateau is 48, according to a 2020 survey by recruitment firm Randstad.

In October 2024, the Chinese government announced that it would raise the age limit from 35 to 40 for those taking the national civil service exam to join central government agencies.

Analysts say the change in the age limit for civil service exams is also a move to prepare the Chinese government to accept workers affected by employers' age policies and the slowing economy.

This move also sends a message to private companies, encouraging them to raise the age limit for hiring.

The fear of turning 35 has become so widespread that in 2023, a temple in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, was criticized for only accepting monks under the age of 35.

Dr. Jane Du, a researcher at the Soas China Institute in London (UK), commented that Chinese policymakers try to attract workers over 35 years old as a temporary solution.

"If the '35-year-old curse' continues amidst mass layoffs due to the economic slowdown and the lingering effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, it may become increasingly difficult for experienced or well-trained workers to reintegrate into the labor market after prolonged periods of unemployment," she said.

“China may also face a labor shortage in the coming years due to its declining population, which highlights the need to maintain the efficiency and contribution of the current workforce,” Ms. Du added.

The government has raised the retirement age from 60 to 63 for men, effective from January this year. For women working in offices, the retirement age has increased from 55 to 58, while women working in manual labor can work until 55, compared to 50 previously.

Policymakers are also concerned about the bleak job prospects for a large number of postgraduate graduates who will enter the labor market in the coming years, due to the slowing economy.

Universities in China expanded enrollment in postgraduate programs to allow students to pursue higher education, aiming to alleviate job market pressure during the Covid-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2023. A record 12.2 million graduates are projected to enter the labor market by 2025.

As of November 2024, the urban unemployment rate for those aged 16 to 24 was 16.1%, while the unemployment rate for those aged 25 to 29 was 6.7%. For those aged 30 to 59, the rate was 3.8%.

Professor Pei Xiaomei of Tsinghua University hopes that other public institutions such as universities and research centers will follow the example of the national civil service examination. Doctoral candidates are worried about being too old to apply for positions in research institutes or educational institutions because the current age limit for recruitment is 35.

Most PhD students in China graduate in their late 20s or early 30s, depending on their major. “If these students are considered the country’s elite, they should have a fairer chance to get the jobs they have trained for,” said Professor Pei.

Professor Liu Erduo said that for the government to truly integrate people over 35 into the public sector, there needs to be a change in culture. However, the government’s move to raise the age limit for national civil service exams to solve the “35-year-old curse” has received support from the people.

A hashtag related to this topic garnered 13.6 million views and generated 2,141 discussions, becoming one of the hottest topics on Weibo in November 2024.

However, some remain skeptical about the effectiveness of this change. One netizen suggested that the change "may be merely a formality" because recruiters could automatically exclude candidates over 35. "It will be easy for recruiters to find reasons to choose younger candidates," a netizen from Hunan province wrote on Weibo.

Duc Hoang (according to Straits Times)

Labor and Social Affairs Newspaper No. 8

Source: https://dansinh.dantri.com.vn/nhan-luc/trung-quoc-no-luc-xoa-bo-phan-biet-tuoi-tac-trong-tuyen-dung-20250117110800681.htm