China seeks to weaken the significance of job titles over the coming years in an effort to reform the employment market?s excessive emphasis on professional headings. The government will expand the number of professions to be recognized under a new scheme to establish a complete vocational qualification system governing over 50 industries within the next five years, an official from Ministry of Personnel were quoted as saying.
Since 1995, over 1.5 million people have taken various vocational qualification examinations, with more than 360,000 obtaining credentials. Fourteen professions have implemented administration registers certifying skilled professionals within the relevant fields.
The implementation of a vocational qualification system strengthens the creation of professional technical personnel and provides an opportunity for human resource management to align itself with international rules and regulations.
The official noted that in many other countries, managers are recognized by vocational qualifications and professional skills rather than superior job titles. In order to deepen the reform of job titles, it is necessary to strengthen the vocational qualification system and improve the appointment system for professional technical positions. Some professional technical roles in fields such as accounting, auditing and marketing, among others, will be replaced by a system which recognizes vocational qualifications.
According to Xinhua News Agency, currently expanding associations and departments have called for establishing new professional qualification systems for relevant vocations. The overall plan is to establish the system in critical fields first and then gradually include other occupations. The government will continue to research and promote the vocational qualification system creation in a number of important fields.
Early this year departments concerned with establishing a national register of engineers led a group to formulate a vocational qualification system for professionals of engineering, information technology, and so on. In addition, to comply with requirements of economic development and standardization, China will give priority to expediting the creation of vocational qualification systems to ensure the quality of various brokers, consulting service employees and finance and insurance professionals.
In line with relevant regulations of WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services, China will take the initiative to promote mutual understanding of vocational qualifications between China and other countries by drawing on foreign management experiences.
(china.org.cn by Li Xiao, October 30, 2002)
