Women's Endowment Faces Challenges in China's Ageing Society
ByLiu Chang April 25, 2013
What to Do?
In China's development of elderly care services, the demands of elderly women have not been met.
Sixty-four percent of elderly over 65 live with their children. The percentage is even higher in rural areas. Among elderly women, 67 percent of elderly women aged between 65 and 79 live together with their children. Of elderly women aged above 80, the percentage is 80 percent.
This indicates China's care for the elderly is mostly family-based. It is more possible elderly women live with their children.
So, when elderly care services are developed, gender should be taken into consideration when policies and rules are made. A diverse variety of services should be provided to meet the demands of elderly women.
In addition, elderly women's rights should be ensured when social policy on labor security is made, for example, establishing a policy for the same retirement age for men and women. It is suggested a flexible retirement system be added to the retirement system. Communities should encourage elderly women to become involved in the communities' public administration.
What's more, training in various vocational and social skills should be provided for the elderly. On this, we can learn from the American experience.
In the United States, many colleges and vocational schools provide further educational opportunities to the elderly, aiming to help them keep up with the rapid development of society and adapt to their new social roles. Some elderly learn new skills through study and find new working opportunities. A working environment and working life can provide the elderly with a strong sense of belonging and help them define their place in society, which is of great importance to their spiritual and mental health.
Women's Employment
Women's employment, as an important sector contributing to social and economic development, is vital to the economic and social status of women and their endowment as they become old. China's government has consistently advocated gender equality and equal employment opportunities between men and women. Chinese women's labor participation rate has maintained a high level over the past 30 years. Discrimination against and marginalization of women in employment, however, are still very serious.
Since women's career lives are usually shorter than men's, and pregnancy can influence their work consistency, many employers are not willing to hire women and it is common for women lack to promotion opportunities. Women, also, seldom take part in making important decisions. Among vocational structures, tertiary industry is still the main industry in which Chinese women are employed.
The national endowment insurance system is not very fair to women. The retirement age for women is younger than men's. During the hard years of the reform of state-owned enterprises at the end of last century, many enterprises encouraged or even forced many women workers to retire even earlier than the legal retirement age to reduce the number of unemployment. Women have paid the cost of the reform and yet they haven't enjoyed its achievements.
Some laid-off or unemployed women were thus forced out of the labor market because of their lack of skills or their ages, which also lowered the actual retirement age.
Women's younger retirement age, their earlier retirement, lay-offs and difficulties in reemployment have made the endowment burdens on society and families heavier.
It is suggested future policy-making related to the endowment insurance system should show care about the living quality of middle-aged and elderly women, mainly focusing on their economic security, medical issues, and human resources development. Supporting policies for women giving birth, child care, and equal employment should be further implemented.
Conclusion
The entire society should provide sufficient participatory opportunities to women, and closely connect the development of elderly women with the sustainable development of society.
As far as endowment is concerned, elderly women in the future will put improving their standards of living, their living environments and their self-worth as their main demands. Family-based elderly care will still be the main method of endowment while social elderly care services will be a necessary supplement.
Elderly Chinese women's economic capacity for self-endowment is strengthening on the whole, but rural elderly women and poor urban elderly women are still very dependent on a family-based elderly care network and social support.
(Source: qstheory.cn/ Translated and edited by womenofchina.cn)
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