Chinese county grapples with how to reward workers for difficult, low-level jobs

A county in eastern China is seeking better perks for grass-roots government workers engaged in social affairs after it struggled to lure talent willing to take on the demanding jobs.

The Social Work Department of the Communist Party committee in Feng county in Xuzhou, Jiangsu province, attributed the shortage of talent in grass-roots government organisations to unattractive remuneration packages and a heavy workload, and called for more financial support.

A report summarising the findings of a survey undertaken in the county was published on the official WeChat account of the department on November 21 and later carried by people.com.cn, the online version of party mouthpiece People’s Daily.

However, the report appeared to have been removed from the WeChat account since the original post. And the People’s Daily website has replaced its initial report with a condensed version that now omits details about problems facing the county.

The report highlights the difficulties facing local governments – especially those in less affluent areas – when tasked with managing the many social responsibilities required under institutional reform measures.

The Social Work Department of the Central Committee is a party organ that was created last year to handle public grievances, grass-roots governance, building the party apparatus in the private sector and coordinating volunteers.

It was created to tighten the party’s grip at all levels and local governments were asked to form local branches to carry out the work at the grass-roots level.

According to the Feng county report, most of the local governance tasks were carried out by contract or temporary staff, including many without professional training.