Why didn’t the “well-intentioned” disability insurance fund work?

Why didn’t the “well-intentioned” disability insurance fund work?

What exactly is the disability insurance fund used for? Does it really play its role? Where does the capital flow? I will give you a detailed introduction below.

After living and studying in Beijing for six years, the hearing-impaired Zheng Lei (pseudonym), who had just received a college diploma, planned to pack his bags and return to his hometown.

Zheng Lei’s dream is to become a graphic designer. In his opinion, hearing impairment does not affect his design and creativity; through sign language and writing assistance, he can also communicate with others. But three months after graduating from the top special education college in the country, he still failed to find a job that matched his major—employers either disliked his lack of communication skills or thought he had no practical experience.

"Ordinary college students can't find a job, let alone us disabled people?" He seemed to accept his fate.

But he didn’t know that China has a “proportional employment system for disabled people” that should have been able to help him. This system stipulates that employers must allocate 1.5%-2% of their positions to hire disabled people; if they recruit disabled people, the unit can enjoy different amounts of social security, job and other subsidies and tax benefits, but is unwilling or unsuitable to recruit people with disabilities. Units with disabled persons must pay a large amount of employment security fund for disabled persons (hereinafter referred to as disability insurance fund) based on the headcount difference. The main purpose of the disability pension is to provide employment services and training for disabled people.

However, the seemingly ingenious system design has actually already gone into misunderstandings. The vast majority of companies are willing to pay money rather than hire disabled people; at the same time, as local governments intensify their efforts to collect disability insurance funds, the amount of disability insurance funds is getting larger and larger, but it remains difficult for disabled people to find employment. In 2006, the proportional employment of disabled people reached a historical peak, then fluctuated and declined in the following years, reaching the lowest value in the past seven years in 2009.

Right now, in the new year, the work of employers to apply for employment arrangements for disabled people and collect disability insurance funds has begun. The employment plight of disabled people has not improved, and companies have complained repeatedly about forced payment of fees. What’s wrong with China’s employment security policy for people with disabilities?

Disability insurance is snowballing

Due to the disadvantaged status of people with disabilities in the job market, the Chinese government has adopted more “welfare policies” "The positioning provides guarantee for the employment of persons with disabilities. The disability pension system also evolved from this idea.

According to statistics, there are 32 million disabled people of working age in China, accounting for 38% of the total number of disabled people. Among disabled people over 15 years old, those with working ability account for 27.42%, and those with partial working ability account for 42.99%.

According to data from the Second National Sample Survey of Disabled Persons in 2006, disabled people with a college education only account for 1.13% of the disabled population, and the illiteracy rate is as high as 43.29%. The employability of disabled people is extremely weak. . The employment rate of disabled people with the ability to work is only about half that of non-disabled people, and the average salary is only half of that of non-disabled people.

Before the 1990s, the main way for disabled people to find employment in China was centralized employment, that is, they were assigned to welfare enterprises established by the government. As the planned economy transitions to a market economy, welfare enterprises encounter challenges from market competition. After 1996, their number gradually decreased, many enterprises struggled to develop, and their ability to accommodate disabled people declined. As of June 2011, there were fewer than 22,000 welfare enterprises in China, 38,000 fewer than in 1995, and 300,000 fewer disabled workers were placed there.

Since 1990, China has advocated a system of proportional employment arrangements for disabled people. Enterprises that cannot make arrangements will be fined for disability insurance. In 2008, the newly revised "Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Disabled Persons" made clear mandatory provisions on this.

However, due to the lack of democratic participation in the relevant policy formulation process and the "one size fits all" policy for employers, the implementation of the above policies is still rejected by many companies.

According to relevant surveys conducted by the Disabled Persons’ Federation, 90% of companies do not actually arrange employment for disabled people. Among more than 40,000 enterprises in Qingdao, only 4.5% have arranged employment for persons with disabilities in proportion; in Guangxi, there are 1,860 directly affiliated units, and only 233 of them have persons with disabilities employed; among 445,000 employers in Beijing, only 10% of them employ persons with disabilities. 21,000, accounting for only 4.7%.

Even in companies that arrange employment for disabled people, the phenomenon of "affiliation" is very common. The company signs a labor contract with the disabled and pays them the minimum wage. At the same time, it signs a private agreement with the disabled. They do not have to report to work, and the company does not have to assume any responsibility for them other than paying wages.

“They feel that disabled people are a burden and will drag them down.” Xu Ping, a full-time member of the Shenzhen Disabled Persons Association, said that in this way, employers do not have to pay disability insurance and can enjoy tax and social security. and other supporting subsidies. As a result, the amount of disability insurance has snowballed. In fact, the greater the amount of disability pension collected, the worse the employment situation of disabled people is.

However, many government officials think that collecting more disability insurance funds is a good thing, and even think that the more disability insurance funds collected, the better. Huang Zhen, a professor at the Central University of Finance and Economics, said that many regional or government officials have also proposed corresponding goals and indicators.

The direction of the funds is unclear

Since 2004, the disability insurance funds across the country have been collected by the local taxation departments instead of the original Disabled Persons' Federation. In some areas, the social security departments have also collected the funds. levy. As a result, the situation of enterprises missing or refusing to pay has been greatly improved, and the amount of disability pension collected in various places has suddenly increased.

In Beijing, before 2005, it was levied by the Disabled Persons’ Federation, and only 750 million yuan was collected in total in 12 years. However, after the local tax collected it in 2006, 950 million yuan was collected that year. In 2007 This year it reached 1.165 billion yuan. However, so far, the amount of the National Disability Insurance Fund and how it is used are accounts that are not open to the public.

There are only some sporadic data that can be used to judge the size of the disability insurance fund. According to the "Research Report on Proportional Arrangements for Employment of Disabled Persons and Employment Security Funds for Disabled Persons" released by the public welfare network platform-Disabled Persons' Employment Promotion Network, in 2006 Beijing collected 950 million yuan in disability insurance funds, Shanghai 600 million yuan, and Sichuan 300 million yuan. Yuan, Hunan 140 million yuan. Since the collection of disability insurance funds is mainly at the urban level, even the China Disabled Persons' Federation does not know the collection situation of disability insurance funds nationwide.

According to the "Law on the Protection of Disabled Persons", the disability pension is included in the fiscal budget and is used exclusively for vocational training for disabled people and the provision of employment services and employment assistance for disabled people. The 1995 "Interim Provisions on the Management of Employment Security Funds for Disabled Persons" (hereinafter referred to as the "Interim Provisions") further clarified that the collection, use and management of disability insurance funds shall be the specific responsibility of the labor service agencies for persons with disabilities at or above the county level (including county level). , and accept the leadership of the local Federation of Disabled Persons.

In 2010, Xu Ping, a full-time member of the Shenzhen Disabled Persons' Association, applied for information disclosure from the Shenzhen Disabled Persons' Federation, requesting that the collection and use of the disability insurance fund be announced, but nothing happened. "So far, no local Disabled Persons' Federation across the country has disclosed the details of the use of disability insurance funds," Xu Ping said.

In the "Interim Provisions", the purpose of the disability insurance fund is generally in four directions: first, for vocational training of disabled people; second, to reward and support units that arrange employment for disabled people in excess of proportion; third, to Support disabled people's collective employment and self-employment; fourth, subsidize the funds and other expenses of labor service agencies for disabled people.

The use of disability insurance funds is directed towards the goal of promoting the employment of disabled people. However, according to Caixin's "New Century", in many areas, "institutional care" has become the main use of disability insurance funds. In the organizational structure of the Disabled Persons' Federation, the labor service agencies for disabled people are its subordinate public institutions; in the central and western regions, many labor service agencies for disabled people are still self-financed public institutions. The disability insurance fund has become the main source of funds for the operation of the institution and the payment of employee wages and benefits.

In Disabled Persons’ Federations at all levels, civil servants and personnel employed outside public institutions also need certain financial subsidies from the Disability Insurance Fund. Zhejiang Province has audited the expenditure on disability insurance funds at the provincial level and 50 counties (cities, districts) from 2005 to 2007. Of the actual expenditure of 964 million yuan, 132 million was spent on vocational training and employment services for disabled people. Yuan, accounting for only 13.69%; and expenditures for comprehensive service facilities and subsidized service institutions reached 379 million yuan, accounting for 39.32% of the total expenditure.

In some county-level institutions, especially in poverty-stricken areas with financial constraints, because the total amount of disability insurance funds is not high, the administrative expenditure of the institution accounts for a more prominent proportion of the disability insurance funds expenditure. In Laifeng County, Hubei Province, the proportion of the disability insurance fund used to pay the wages and benefits of the staff of the Labor and Employment Management Office for Disabled Persons once accounted for 45%, and 20% of the expenditure was spent. In addition, 15% was used to subsidize the allowances of the staff of the Disabled Persons' Federation. Welfare.

“The money used to ensure the employment of our disabled people is used to support such a group of people.” Xu Ping was very dissatisfied with this. He introduced that there are 16 employees in an employment service center for persons with disabilities in a district in Shenzhen, and welfare benefits are provided based on civil servant salary levels, with a monthly minimum of 4,000 yuan and a maximum of 7,000 yuan. The monthly salary for the public welfare positions designed by the Disabled Persons' Federation for disabled people is only 2,500 yuan.

Inefficiency Trap

It is reasonable to use disability insurance funds to pay wages to personnel who provide employment services for disabled people. Zhang Xizheng, a researcher at the Yi Neng Yi Xing Disability Research Institute, said that part of foreign disability insurance funds are also used to subsidize the wages of social workers. The key is whether the services provided by these people and institutions are effective.

Currently, in the employment training and services for disabled people, the labor service agencies for disabled people under the Disabled Persons’ Federation have almost a monopoly. Whether it is the efficiency of the use of disability insurance funds or the effectiveness of vocational training, there is a lack of neutral evaluation from the government to the private sector. Many people with disabilities are skeptical of its effectiveness.

In the case of Zheng Lei, a hearing-impaired person who wanted to be a graphic designer mentioned above, when he went to the Beijing Disabled Persons’ Federation to get free training, he was told that only disabled people with a Beijing household registration Only in order to enjoy it, outsiders cannot participate in the training even if they pay money. He is optimistic about two private institutions in Beijing that specialize in digital vision technology training, but the tuition fees are tens of thousands of yuan and "they are simply unaffordable."

Xiaoxiang, a girl from Nanchang, participated in two trainings organized by the Disabled Persons’ Federation, one to learn computer technology and the other to learn mobile phone repair. "It's not interesting." Xiao Xiang complained that the computer training only taught the most basic content, but there was no practical class for mobile phone repair. “I took part in the training but still couldn’t find a job.

”

One Plus One Disability Cultural Development Center (hereinafter referred to as One Plus One) is a private non-enterprise organization founded by disabled people and self-service. Founder Xie Yan introduced that the Disabled Persons’ Federation training project The biggest problem is the lack of pertinence. It is understood that the Beijing Disabled Persons' Federation currently provides folk handicrafts, rural practical skills training, denture technicians and computer training for the physically disabled and hearing-impaired. There are job recommendations, but employment is not guaranteed; blind people participate. With massage training, the employment rate can reach almost 100%.

“But can’t blind people do other things besides massage?” Xie Yan said that it took eight months for OnePlus One to achieve the goal. He trained two blind stenographers and developed a set of stenography teaching materials for the visually impaired. However, when he lobbied the local Disabled Persons' Federation in the hope of recommending this project to more blind people by purchasing services, he was declined. The reason is that it takes too long and the cost is too high. “The number of people trained is an evaluation indicator for their superiors, so they naturally hope to train more people in a shorter time. ”

Beijing Fengtai District Lizhi Rehabilitation Center (hereinafter referred to as Lizhi Center) has provided employment training and support to people with intellectual disabilities since 2001 - this is exactly what is not included in the training system of the Disabled Persons' Federation . The Lizhi Center has trained more than 700 trainees for free, and 64 of them have found employment.

Zhou Xiannian of the Lizhi Center told Caixin's "New Century" reporter that after the training, their jobs have changed. The staff will also accompany him to the job to get familiar with the work environment and make new friends. When the trainee has a good interaction with the surrounding employees and the working environment can provide him with natural support, the trainee can quit at any time. Go back to the center for help.

Re-evaluation of the system

The proportional employment system for disabled people has not effectively alleviated the employment difficulties of disabled people, and the core is the collection of disability insurance funds. In the view of Zhang Xizheng and others, this work model misinterprets the original intention of the system. Many scholars have suggested that employers who do not arrange employment for disabled people should be fined higher, and at the same time, institutions that employ disabled people should be given higher penalties. Strong incentives.

According to the relevant person in charge of the Disabled Persons’ Federation, increasing the control of economic means is also the direction for the next revision of the policy. On the one hand, employers employing people with severe or moderate disabilities. The "conversion" ratio will be increased. For example, hiring a severely disabled person can be calculated as arranging the employment of three disabled people; on the other hand, there will be more severe penalties, and the situation of long-term payment and no use of people will no longer be allowed.

It is understood that in addition to vocational training, local Disabled Persons' Federations are also gradually increasing subsidies to employers that accept disabled people for employment, such as the Beijing Disabled Persons' Federation's new job subsidies, social security subsidies and other projects, said the relevant person in charge of its policy research office. According to the introduction, this type of subsidy is almost the largest expenditure direction of Beijing’s Disability Insurance Fund.

However, Zhang Xizheng does not agree with the "severe punishment" idea. He said that the tax burden on Chinese enterprises is already very heavy. Increasing the amount of disability insurance will be detrimental to enterprises. “We cannot pass all government responsibilities onto employers. "He said that without basic anti-discrimination work, increasing penalties will only increase the cost of system implementation. The idea he favors is to reduce the cost for employers to hire disabled people, and at the same time provide disabled people with adequate support in education, training, and employment. , allowing them to compete fairly with non-disabled people for jobs on the premise of anti-discrimination.

These targeted services require extensive participation from social forces, competitive provision of resources, and improved efficiency. Under the existing system, "quasi-governmental organizations" such as the Disabled Persons' Federation monopolize a large number of resources, including disability insurance funds, and many private disability assistance organizations have difficulties in registration, financing and operation.

Zhang Xizheng. He emphasized that the opaque use of disability pension funds is just a concrete manifestation of the current lack of openness and transparency of government information. He said that the most important way to use disability pension funds abroad is to purchase services from non-governmental organizations, including skills training and comprehensive education. , as well as job introduction, post-employment support services, etc. Government departments are more responsible for the supervision and effect evaluation of fund use to ensure the efficiency of fund use.

In the opinion of many people in the industry, The reason why disabled people find it difficult to find employment is not because of lack of money, but also because of the need for innovation in social management mechanisms to create opportunities for disabled people to integrate into society in a more professional, transparent and open manner.

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