BEIJING – Female graduates were admitted into a job fair 30 minutes earlier than their male counterparts for the first time on March 14 at Renmin, one of China’s top universities, in order to relieve gender discrimination.

In 2016, China abandoned its 39-year-long one-child policy and allowed two children for all couples. The second largest economy now needs more babies to boost its shrinking workforce and to support the ageing population.

Meanwhile, because of the new policy, employers have a stronger preference for male candidates who don’t need maternity leave, resulting in gender discrimination in the job market. Therefore, the university admitted female graduates earlier in hope that this could help them find jobs.

However, some female candidates remain skeptical towards the “early entry”. “I doubt whether it (entering earlier) would make any difference,” said Yan Jing, a female graduate who prepared a folder full of resumes.

The truth is, well prepared female jobseekers like Yan Jing may not have a chance to hand in their resumes. At a booth of the job fair where jobseekers lined up, an employer skipped a female candidate, only talking to males.

“If every female staff gets pregnant right after she gets familiar with her work, our company will suffer a huge loss,” said a male employer from Beijing Public Transportation Company.

In fact, besides young graduates, working mothers around childbearing age also face aggravated discrimination because of the possibility of bearing a second child.

“Gender discrimination against women is getting more severe in the job market because of the two-child policy,” said Zheng Shangyuan, a labor law professor at Tsinghua University. “Companies always promise to support gender equality while failing to realize it.”

Data also shows that Chinese women are torn between children and career.

According to a Chinese recruitment website, almost 42% of career mothers admitted that career-related concerns is one of the reasons for not having a second child. Another research found that one-third of career women aged from 18 to 45 quitted their jobs to become full-time mothers.

Chinese government has already been considering incentives for families with a second baby.

Li Xixia, a researcher at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, advocates for legislation regarding paternal leave, to ease gender discrimination.

“Fathers should also take the responsibility of raising children,” says Li.