welfare

Shanghai Plugs Holes in Welfare Net, Gig Workers Now Get Benefits

Timely reports on issues and events from across China. Drawing on a vast range of sources, these succinct articles provide insights into the significance of each issue in a wider context.

NEWS

Earlier, such schemes were available only to employees with contracts, leaving workers such as delivery riders and cab drivers out of social schemes.

Li Xin

Call of Duty: Why Family Care for the Mentally Ill Is No Game

Translations, cross-publications, and collaborative projects from Sixth Tone’s external partners. 

SIXTH TONE ×

Family support is essential for people with mental illnesses. But it leaves caregivers struggling with the emotional fallout.

Liang Ting

On a Chinese Mountaintop, a Community Just for People With Autism

Articles that cut to the core of contemporary China. In-depth, informed, and carefully crafted, every piece is carried by the voices of the story’s participants.

FEATURES

In China, care facilities to support people with autism are scarce. So families are banding together to build their own.

Du Xinyu

A Show About Poverty Alleviation Is Getting Historically High Reviews

Critics and casual viewers alike appreciate how “Minning Town” doesn’t shy away from some of the common missteps associated with government relocation projects.

Kenrick Davis

Despite a Bumpy 2020, China Says It Has Eliminated Poverty

The government claims to have lifted over 800 counties out of poverty since 2015. How will it keep them above the line?

Yuan Ye

This Year, Remote Lüeyang Beat Poverty. Now Comes the Hard Part.

As China’s poverty campaign nears its deadline, rural Chinese wonder whether small-scale factories can keep them out of destitution in the years beyond.

Are Kids in China Better-Off Today Than a Decade Ago?

This Children’s Day, Sixth Tone takes a look back at 10 years’ worth of policies aimed at better protecting children, as well as their still-evident shortcomings.

Bloom and Bust: The Officials Who Bet a County’s Future on Sunflowers

Two local leaders invested heavily in planting sunflowers to help their region climb out of poverty. Then the plan backfired spectacularly.

Book of Poverty Alleviation Case Studies Unveiled in Shanghai

Chinese authorities are touting the collection as a model for developing countries to emulate.

Fu Danni

New Animal Center in Beijing Protects Strays, Educates Public

By advocating for animal welfare and facilitating adoptions, the center aims to be more just than a shelter.

Fan Yiying

Can Livestreaming Lift China Out of Poverty by 2020?

China’s video and e-commerce platforms say they’re putting rural content creators on the path to fame and fortune, but questions persist about whether their poverty-busting initiatives can actually make a difference.

Xue Yujie

How Informal Adoptions Gave Some Chinese Orphans a Better Future

Contributions from individuals with unique perspectives to share. Hear from everyone, from experts and commentators to those whose voices are often marginalized.

VOICES & OPINION

Although technically illegal, these informal foster care arrangements are often better than life in the welfare system.

Dou Zhenfang

Mailing Animals Both Illegal and Common in China, Report Says

Though prohibited under the country’s postal law, purchasing a pet online is often no different from buying any other product.

Ni Dandan

‘Rental Tigers’ Advertised Ahead of Chinese Holiday

The decline of the country’s once-thriving animal circus industry has given rise to short-term leasing services.

How China Can Improve the Lives of Its State-Supported Orphans

After years spent in state-run institutions, adult orphans often struggle to find their footing in society.

Shang Xiaoyuan

Pensioners and Preschoolers Mix it Up in Chinese Nursery

Though a rare intergenerational care experiment has proven a hit, widespread support remains elusive.

China Vows Equal Protections for ‘de Facto Orphans’

Beginning next year, children of prisoners, drug addicts, and the infirm will receive the same welfare benefits as orphans.

For China’s Abandoned Children, Acrobatics Is a Harsh Last Hope

Critics pan rural schools as exploitative and dangerous. Advocates say they fill a social need.

China’s Health Insurance to Cover More Lifesaving Drugs

People with pulmonary hypertension and other rare diseases hope an update to the national catalog of insured drugs will ease the financial burden on their families.

Ride-Hailing Giant Didi Slashes Employee Benefits

The company said the changes are only ‘adjustments’ to existing programs and that it has ‘no plans to make any major cuts.’