Employees working in some of Beijing's more lucrative occupations found they earned nearly seven times than less fortunate fellow citizens last year.
According to a survey on salaries in 86 fields recently conducted by the Beijing Bureau of Statistics, the average yearly for workers of Beijing in 2001 was 19,155 yuan (US$ 2319), a 13.7 increase over last year, given the price factors.
The survey also revealed, however, that despite general growth in incomes, the income gap in China's capital continued to grow last year. The city's highest salaries were 6.6 times as high as that of the cities’ three lowest, with the gap growing by 160 percent year-on-year.
About 4 million people, 39.4 percent of all workers, made more than the average income, the bureau said, while another 30 percent earn less than 15,000 yuan a year.
Workers in the finance and insurance sectors saw the biggest increase in 2001, a 63.2 percent jump to 37,000 yuan per year on average.
(People’s Daily March 27, 2002)
