Chinese Provinces and Regions are relaxing age restrictions for candidates registering for the current Public Service examinations, sending a positive signal to middle-aged people who may be experiencing employment anxiety.
Some 27 Provinces and Regions out of the 30 that recently began their Public Service recruitment campaigns have raised age restrictions for candidates to 40 years, up from 35.
The Henan Civil Service Bureau said the relaxation was due to changing requirements for certain positions.
Associate Professor at the National Academy of Governance, Zhu Lijia said the age relaxation “shows the nation’s resolve to promote employment”.
He said the age limit had caused many companies to follow suit, while relaxing it could help promote a fairer job market and avoid prejudice against middle-aged job seekers.
In the past few years, prejudice against employees in their late 30s has attracted attention both from the Government and the public.
Deputy to the National People’s Congress and a researcher at Wenzhou University in Zhejiang Province, Jiang Shengnan said the age limit delivered a negative signal to society that once people reached 35 they might lose out in job competition.
“People may have a difficult time at around 35 years old if they have children to raise and older parents to support,” Ms Jiang (pictured) said.
“It’s neither scientific nor fair to exclude these people in recruitment, and it is a huge waste of human resources.”
Beijing, 2 March 2023
