The Effect of Urbanization on Employment Growth: An Empirical Analysis

Urbanization is an important factor influencing employment. In this paper, we firstly make a theoretical analysis on the influencing mechanism of the urbanization on employment, and then data from 31 provinces in 2010 is used to make an empirical analysis. The estimation results show that urbanization has some positive and significant effects on employment. But the effect is relatively small when compared with other countries. And the employment promotion effect has not take place in the east and the medium regions in China. The possible reasons may lie in the deagriculturalization mode and high entry cost into the cites in China. Government should immediately reform the household registration system so as to lower the city entrance barrier and enhance the employment.