Living Conditions
SOCIETY
"Well levelled is the courtyard, Firm are the pillars,
Cheerful are the rooms by day,
Softly glowing by night,
A place where our lord can be at peace” (Book of Songs, 600 BC)
The average per capita income for rural Chinese in 1985 was 397 yuan (an increase of 11·8% over 1984) and for urban Chinese 752 yuan (an increase of 23·8%). With inflation running at 8.8%, the increases in real terms were nearer 8.4 and 10·6%. Salaries of professional workers (doctors, engineers, etc) may range from 60 up to 330 yuan a month. (There are over 5 yuan to the pound but official exchange rates do not give an accurate measure of the purchasing power of Chinese currency.) A new "structural wage system" was introduced in 1985 for government workers. Wages are divided into four parts: basic wage; allowance for specific duties; service length allowance, and bonus.
Almost two-thirds of family income is spent on food. The government has recently removed subsidies from many food products, and rationing has been abolished on all but grain and edible oils. Some food prices in the cities rose considerably in 1985: fresh vegetables by 34.5%; meat, poultry, eggs by 22%, and fruit by 35.9%.
Between 1979 and 1984 the average consumption level rose by 57.7%. Ownership of bicycles, radios and wristwatches is fairly commonplace. Colour televisions are now in high demand. Sales of washing machines and refrigerators in 1985 were fifty times greater than a few years ago.
Housing conditions remain cramped. The average per capita living space has increased: in urban areas, from 4·96 (1980) to 6·7 square metres (1985); in rural areas, from 9-4 (1980) to 15 square metres (1985). There are schemes afoot to build houses for private sale. Workers pay about one third of the sale price to the State, the shortfall made up by the State and employers. About 10,000 such homes have been built in Shanghai. Rent at present accounts for 3% of income.
Savings have quadrupled since 1980.
Health and Welfare
"A good doctor first advises his patients how to eat and sleep and only then does he give
them medicine." (Proverb)
China has 1.4 million doctors, including 324,000 specialising in traditional Chinese medicine. There are over 2.25 million hospital beds, an average of just over 2 per 1,000 people. Urban workers generally receive their wages during periods of illness and are entitled to free medical attention but may be charged for drugs and for their board when in hospital. The Chinese government is now encouraging the development of private medicine to supplement its own health service. Private medical workers number some 80,000. Most of these are in the rural areas.
Industrial workers retire at the age of 60 (men) or 55 (women). They are entitled to a pension up to 90% of their last monthly income, depending on length of service, and to free medical care.
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