Welfare grass may appear greener on the other side of the fence, but is not

A young man I know has been trying to migrate to one of the European countries. Having changed jobs a couple of dozen times in the past decade, he recently told me that he was fed up with his superiors' strict demands and the tough competition from colleagues. Immigration agents have convinced him that he should migrate to a European country in order to lead a relatively relaxed life and enjoy various social welfares.

He plans to sell a Beijing apartment he inherited from his grandparents for a few million yuan, which he can use to apply under the immigrant investor program for residency in a European country that welcomes such investment. "Once successful, I can largely lie flat and enjoy the impressive social welfares such as free education for children, free medical care, better eldercare, longer vacations and higher income," he said.

I know the picture he presented is only partly true. But I was not in the mood to argue with him. Experience tells me there is no free lunch anywhere.

But his claim that European countries have better social welfare programs prompted me to compare the social welfare plans of China and European countries. The truth is that as a latecomer, China has been doing pretty well in terms of its social welfare program, which helps protect hundreds of millions Chinese people against various socioeconomic troubles.

China introduced the two-day weekend in 1995. People today may take it for granted but for people of my generation it was the biggest benefit one could dream of. In 2008, China began implementing the annual leave policy, under which employees with less than 10 years of working experience can get five days of annual leave, while those with more than 10 years and 20 years of working experience can get 10 days and 15 days of annual leave respectively. If we add the 52 weekends, and the two Golden Weeks and other public holidays, a Chinese employee enjoys about 140 days of offs and leave.

As for healthcare, more than 95 percent of China's 1.41 billion people are covered by medical insurance. Unlike some European countries where patients have to complete complicated procedures and wait for a long time to see a doctor, a patient from even a remote area in China can get timely treatment by the best doctors in the best hospitals in cities like Beijing and Shanghai. The healthcare insurance usually covers between 50 and 95 percent of the medical costs depending on the location and type of insurance one has taken out.

Besides, with China's rapidly rising aging population, providing proper eldercare has become a government priority. Pension has been increasing by 3-5 percent a year for the past 20 years and senior citizens can travel on buses or visit parks for free or on discount. A recent message on our WeChat group in a Sanya neighborhood, Hainan province, said that people aged above 60 could enjoy a buffet meal for just 1 yuan ($0.13) in a nearby canteen when the actual cost is 18 yuan.

China made the nine-year compulsory education free in 2008. In some rural areas, schools also serve free lunch for students. This has helped raise the compulsory education rate to 95.5 percent. Although higher education is not free in China, public universities' tuition fee is between 5,000 yuan and 8,000 yuan a year, which most Chinese families can afford to pay. And for families facing financial difficulties, their children can get government grants, social donations and/or low-interest education loans from the banks.

Also, people who have lost their jobs for various reasons can get an unemployment allowance for up to 24 months with the sum being 90 percent of the local minimum wages, and attend free vocational training programs to hone their or learn new skills to increase their chances of getting a new job.

The Chinese people enjoy a lot of social welfares without actually realizing or acknowledging them. China has done a remarkable job of improving social welfare, though there is still much room for improvement. Growing stronger economically and financially, China will introduce more social welfare programs by drawing lessons from European countries. And that's exactly why I'd suggest the young man eager to migrate to a European country to rethink his migration decision.

The author is former deputy editor-in-chief of China Daily.

kangbing@chinadaily.com.cn