(Yicai Global) Oct. 20 -- China’s employment rate is back to pre-pandemic levels as recruitment by internet, entertainment and chip-making companies soars, a new report said.

While the pandemic curbed hiring by many firms, especially those with brick-and-mortar concerns, there now exists a more diversified job mix across different sectors, according to yesterday’s report from the China Institute for Employment Research and recruiter Zhaopin.

The entertainment, sports and leisure sectors saw a five-fold increase in recruitment in the third quarter from a year earlier on increased demand for live-streaming broadcasters and other online roles. Hiring at electronics firms and chipmakers surged more than 60 percent.

Nine million people found new jobs in China’s cities during the first nine months, 99.8 percent of this year’s target, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics yesterday. The unemployment rate in cities was 5.4 percent last month, down from 5.6 percent in August, and far below the 6.2 percent rate seen at the start of the year.

While China’s in-work level is pretty much back to normal based on employee numbers, the quality of jobs needs addressing, said CIER Director Zeng Xiangquan. For individuals working in sectors that have a lot of contact with other people, such as housekeepers, jobs are scarce and remuneration is low. These negative influences should not be underestimated, he added.

Intermediary agencies came top of a business climate index, followed by the insurance, entertainment, sports and leisure sectors. The fields of energy, mineral resources, electricity and tourism ranked relatively low.

Editor: Kim Taylor