User:Royo322/sandbox

TO BE ADDED TO THE EXISTING ONE-CHILD POLICY PAGE.

ADDED TO BACKGROUND:

In 1949, shortly after Mao Zedong became the leader of the newly declared People’s Republic of China a policy was created to promote population growth. Mao Zedong desired a large workforce when his government banned contraceptives. By condemning the use of birth control measures, China’s population doubled over the next few years. The results of anti-contraceptive policy resulted in widespread famine. From 1959-1961, the Great Chinese Famine would claim the lives of roughly 20-30 million people. These were the conditions that led to China’s infamous one child policy in 1979, which many consider to be controversial but effective method of population control.

ADDED TO EFFECTS:
Now, the 40 year stagnant birth rate is affecting the Chinese labor market. The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs has predicted that by 2050, 25% of the Chinese people will be over the age of 65. This large demographic is being aged out of the workforce, and may cause an eventual labor deficit within the country. The one child policy was enacted to deter an overgrowing population from hindering the economy, but it may result in what it was attempting to avoid in the long run.

The birth rate in China is currently 1.62 births per woman; a figure that aligns with other developed nations. It appears that it will not be rising in the near future, and that China may have to come up with an alternative solution to incentivize child birth and larger families. A large gender disparity has also formed which impacts future fertility rates. Government reports show 118 boys for every 100 girls in China.

One of the problems China has with its labor force is incentivizing migrant workers to move into the dense, urban areas. China uses a household registration system called Hukou which bans the rural population from utilizing many of the city's social infrastructure. Migrants cannot use childcare, schools, housing, or hospitals unless a heavy fee is paid. The charge for these basic services is so extensive that many families simply cannot afford to make the move into the cities where jobs are desperately needed to be filled. In cities like Shanghai, there is a reported 30 to 70 percent gap between the number of workers demanded and the number available to work. China's ageing society is causing a pension shortfall. Contributions from younger workers cannot keep up with the benefit payouts of the country's retired population. This has caused the Chinese government to have to step in and cover the difference; an expensive financial undertaking.

China is no longer the cheap manufacturing hub it once was. Changes in the economy, family dynamics, and government regulations are raising costs on what was once cheap labor. Young workers don't want to work in factories, and are becoming more educated across the country. In 2000, only 1 million students would graduate college; in 2010, 6 million graduated. This rapidly expanding educated class demands higher wages and higher skilled job from the labor market. Many factories are having trouble finding low skilled, cheap labor.

The One Child Policy is said to have prevented nearly 400 million births. Between 1979-2012, 336 million abortions were carried out in registered facilities. China performed 196 million sterilizations and over 403 million intrauterine procedures, in an attempt to keep their population from growing. Now, 40 years later a 4-2-1 structure has formed in Chinese households : 4 grandparents, and 2 parents are being supported by 1 child. As young workers move away from home, the elderly have been left to fend for themselves in sparse rural regions. The Elderly Rights Law, passed in 2013 requires adult children to travel home and check on their parents.

The Chinese labor market has become very competitive for domestic firms in response to the labor shortage. Businesses must offer creative incentives and higher pay to attract employees. Typical incentives that Chinese employees see are subsidies for further education; rewards for developing new technologies; incentives for long-term service; cash payouts for weddings and funerals; and company led vacation outings. These incentives and higher wages are eating away profit margins for firms, reducing growth, and slowing investments in technology and development in businesses nationwide.