ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we hope to briefly set the scene for the discussion of the problem of unemployment (shiye) 1 in the People’s Republic of China (hence-forth to be referred to as China). This issue has great importance not only for its economy but also for the rest of the world; one in five of people living on this planet, over 1.3 billion, are Chinese. Its economy now accounts for close to one-eighth of world output, in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms (see The Economist 2004: 4).
