Empirical Research On The Basic Old-age Insurance Participation Of Floating Population In China Against The Backdrop Of Urban And Rural Development

China is fast entering an ageing society and the ageing degree becomes higherand higher. As a result, it is imperative for every country in the world to build asound social old-age insurance system and institution to deal with an ageingpopulation. Since reform and opening-up, the basic old-age insurance system inChina has been improving step by step, from basic old-age insurance system forurban workers to social old-age insurance system for rural population and anexpanding social old-age insurance system for urban residents. In2011, SocialInsurance Law and the12thFive-Year Plan on Basic Public Service System wereissued, which marks the establishment of a basic old-age insurance system thatcovers both China’s urban and rural population in terms of law and policies.In accordance with the result of the6th nationwide population census,2010saw221million of floating population across our country, accounting for16.5%of thetotal population. Currently, China is undergoing an unprecedentedly massivepopulation migration. With further industrialization and urbanization in future, therewill be an increasingly big floating population, a trend that coincides with theemergence of an aging society. In the light of the basic old-age insurance system thatworks for the overall urban-rural planning, floating people are eligible to be includedin basic old-age insurance in the city where they work as well as new rural socialold-age insurance and social old-age insurance for urban residents in the city wherethey are registered as permanent residents.Under such circumstances, to have a clear picture of the basic old-age insurancefor floating population, we should concern not only the basic old-age insurance theyenjoy in the city where they work, but also social old-age insurance for rural orurban residents in the place where their registered residence is. On the basis of the2011sample survey data on nationwide floating population, a targeted in-deepanalysis is made on the basic old-age insurance floating people enjoy in the city where they work and social old-age insurance they enjoy in the place where theirregistered residence is. In addition, a comprehensive study is conducted on the basicold-age insurance, new rural social old-age insurance and social old-age insurancefor urban residents for China’s floating population.According to the analysis result of the basic old-age insurance that floatingpopulation participate in the city they flow into, only less than1/4of floatingpopulation enjoy social old-age insurance in the city they migrate to. Not only that,there exists differences in population community, floating families and employmentstatus. Further analysis reveals there are even less people insured in privately-andindividually-owned businesses. And, in comparison with short-term migrators, wecan see a drop in the proportion of people who first enter the ageing phase and areincluded in the social pension system. Furthermore, the ratio of floating peopleinsured in mid and western China is apparently lower than those in provinces of EastChina.Meanwhile, in line with the analysis result of new rural social old-ageinsurance and social old-age insurance for urban residents that floating peopleparticipate in the place of domicile, among rural floating population who are notincluded in the social old-age insurance system in the city they flow into, around1/10of them enjoy rural social old-age insurance in the place where they registeredresidence is. Additionally, among non-rural floating population that have no accessto the social old-age insurance system, less than1/4of them are covered in the urbansocial old-age insurance system in the place where they’re registered as permanentresidents. But, more and more people from the two groups have access to theinsurance system as they grow old, stay longer in the inflow area and haveincreasing family income. Moreover, most people below are included in the socialpension system, such as people with a good educational background, families withonly2members, migrators who work not far from their place of domicile, those whohave houses of their own and whose registration residence is in east China.Generally speaking, empirical analysis on the three basic old-age insuranceshows: around1/3of floating people are included in at least one social old-ageinsurance; the general level of insurance tend to be low and there are even somepeople who have overlapping insurance; there is a big gap between insurance forrural population and that for urban residents; the number of non-rural population insured is much bigger than that of rural people; and, there exists a big differencebetween different provinces or regions in terms of the number people insured; largenumbers of floating people are included in the social old-age insurance system ineast China; there is a big proportion of rural people who are covered in the ruralsocial old-age insurance system in west China; things does not good for people whoare self-employers or are employed in private-or individual-owned businesses orwho are entering the ageing phase the first; improvement in housing and familyincome help to improve the situation for floating people. Additionally, educationalbackground as a key human resource element has a key role in getting the floatingpopulation insured through combined effects with work units and the specificindustries they are in.Most developed countries have entered the ageing society at an earlier time. Inresponse to this issue, they have established a sound and comprehensive old-ageinsurance system for each of their citizen through dozens of or even over100yearsof efforts. On the basis of the research on policies on the old-age insurance system inJapan, the US, Sweden, Chile and European Union and the specific features ofChinese population, especially that the floating population, suggestions are putforward in the thesis about how to improve the basic old-age insurance system thatworks for the overall urban-rural development. I hope these suggestions may play apart in dealing with the issue of an ageing population and promoting economicstability and sustainable development.