(Ecns.cn) – China's civil service examination is suspected of employment discrimination in terms of age, gender, health, political status, origin and many other factors, according to a survey released on Sunday by the Constitutionalism Research Institute at the China University of Political Science and Law (CUPL).
The survey selected the National People's Congress, the People's Court, the People's Procuratorate, the All-China Women's Federation, the Disabled Persons' Federation, and the Labor Union as the main targets, from whose admittance standards the conclusion was reached.
It showed that the requirements of all 9,762 posts in the central government involved discrimination against age and health in 2011, without a single exception. For instance, the 92 posts of the Helicopter Police Corps under the Civil Aviation Administration of China required all applicants to be under the age of 28.
19.1% of the posts were only accessible to Party or League members and 15.6% only recruited male applicants. Origin and registered residence were among the most seriously discriminated factors, as up to 85% of the posts had related requirements which would disqualify a large number of applicants.
Public ire was raised mostly by the requirement concerning appearance or physical characteristics, although only 0.4% of the posts involved such discrimination.
The CUPL's Constitutionalism Research Institute advices the government to abolish these discriminatory requirements as soon as possible, and establish an inspection mechanism for employment discrimination in the future to ensure fair competition in civil service exams.
In 2012, China's central and provincial governments will only be allowed to recruit new civil servants, except in some special posts, from applicants with at least two years of grassroots work experience.
