China's Communist Party Proposes Better Pensions for Public Employees Versus Private

To foster integrity!

The Communist Party's flagship newspaper upheld the mainland's "dual-track pension scheme" -- where public servants get more retirement benefits than those in the private sector  -- amid heated debate over the system.

"'Public servant' is a position that is able to wield considerable administrative power. Dwindling pension benefits will risk hindering their initiative and diminishing their integrity," read a commentary on People's Daily published on Wednesday.

"Qualifiers of public servant positions often have higher educational backgrounds that arise from longer years of education and more tuition fees, so isn't it unfair as well [not to] discriminate the pension fee between them and blue-collar workers?" the article argued.

The appeal echoed an article the paper ran earlier this week that scrutinised the pension schemes practiced in the United States, Germany, Japan and Hong Kong, arguing it is a common approach elsewhere in the world for government employees to enjoy favourable pension benefits than others in the private sector.

(Hat tip to Chris Reed)