China’s Jiangsu province moves to subsidise maternity leave
- Claire Lee
Jiangsu province in China has moved to subsidise firms for paying insurance to female employees who have their second and third child, in a move that could help alleviate discrimination against hiring women in the workplace.
Companies in the province would be reimbursed for 50% or 80% of the social insurance paid to women who have a second child or a third child, respectively, reports South China Morning Post.
Jiangsu’s policy is one of the latest incentives rolled out in the country to encourage families to have more children. So far, authorities have provided tax cuts, direct payments and home purchase subsidies to boost childbirths.
China saw its overall population increase by 480,000 to 1.4126 billion last year. Childbirths in the country fell to 10.62 million last year, a 11.5% drop from 2020.
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In Nanjing, Jiangsu’s capital city, authorities have announced that families with more than one child are eligible to purchase one more property and lower mortgage rates.
