Nanjing news

Goodbye Iron Rice Bowl

On Wednesday Jan. 13, the Personnel Secretary of Nanjing Liu Ning announced that a massive restructuring will take place in the city that will revamp the hiring and employment practices of 2900 government subsidiary institutions, affecting 114,000 workers.

In essence, from July 2010, lifelong contracts will be terminated, and annual performance reviews implemented. In addition, all employees are to be reclassified into one of three categories: management, professional skilled positions, and service positions.

Essentially, these measures intend to bring greater flexibility to the recruiting of new talent, internal promotions, and employee efficiency.
"Iron rice bowl" (simplified Chinese: 铁饭碗; traditional Chinese: 鐵飯碗; pinyin: tiě fàn wǎn) is a Chinese term used to refer to an occupation with guaranteed job security, as well as steady income and benefits. Traditionally, people considered to have iron rice bowls include military personnel, members of the civil service, as well as employees of various state run enterprises (through the mechanism of the work unit).

- from Wikipedia – original story

New Metro line to cross the Yangtze River

On January 11, construction began on Metro Line #3, which will cross the Yangtze River and connect the city center with the Pukou District. At present, there are three bridges that cross the river, but only one for private cars and public use. The result of this is massive congestion, which the new metro line is intended to relieve.

Metro Line #3 is expected to be completed by 2015 at a cost of 32.67 billion yuan.

– original story

Yancheng taxi drivers stage a protest

On Jan. 11 and 12, 800 taxi drivers staged a protest in Yancheng city (northeast of Nanjing) against illegal taxis. According to Yangzi Evening News reporters, illegal taxis are triad-related. They look similar to legal taxis, but they do not have insurance, many don’t have meters, and many of the drivers don’t even have driver’s licenses, which poses a serious threat to public safety.

The majority of illegal cabs can be found at the Yancheng Railway and Bus stations, where dubious characters attempt to trick newbie’s into falling for extreme price gouges. According to the report, the most worrisome aspect of the situation is that many of the drivers cannot differentiate between the brake and accelerator pedals.

In response to the taxi driver protest, Yancheng city officals met with the mob and promised to issue a clear plan to remedy the situation, thus ending the strike. A day later, a heavier police presence was reported at both the Yancheng bus and railway stations. 

– original story

Public buses run amok

In the first two weeks of January, 2 people died in traffic accidents caused by public buses, which has led to an outcry about safety. In the source article, reporters liken the recent accidents to those of construction waste trucks, which have killed many people in recent years (apparently, unskilled and overly aggressive drivers are to blame).

In response, Nanjing transportation officials have released a series of rules to drivers, plus a new evaluation system: drivers will now get only two thirds of their salary, with the other third being held up and released only after a safety and service evaluation.

– original story

Garden Bureau boffins cause traffic chaos

Last week, Nanjing fell into the grip of a cold spell, with temperatures staying below zero for three consecutive days. On Thursday the 14th, when the temperature dropped to -6 C, the city Garden Bureau sent out a team to water the plants along the main drag of Zhongshan Lu.

The result was a 200-meter-long ice slick which caused six traffic accidents, numerous bike crashes, pedestrians falling over left and right, and a swatch of frozen plant deaths. Eventually, the cops showed up, sealed off the road, and then salted off the ice. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.

The Garden Bureau apologized for the blunder, releasing a statement that it was the first time the watered this newly-constructed road, thus they could not predict that ice would form there.
– original story

New discounts for seniors via ID card

On Thursday Jan. 14, Transport Ministry officials announced that a new public traffic card has been issued that will allow all local residents aged between 60-69 take the bus for half price fares, while those older than 70 who acquire the card may take the bus for free.

20,000 of these cards were issued in a test release last December, while officials plan to release 2 million more over the course of 2010.

– original story

Duo acts queer to sting local gay

Last October, two teens (one 18, the other 17 years old) were arrested for assaulting and robbing a local homosexual. According to the police, the teens hooked up with the dupe (pseudonym is 'Mr. Li') via the local gay website. After a few meetings in public places, they eventually went back to his place for a threesome.

According to Mr. Li, the pair claimed to be cooks that were new to the city and looking for work. While the victim and one of the teens were on the bed, the other one attacked by placing a pair of scissors to Mr. Li's neck, saying: "Honey, I'm sorry, we have no money, we lost our mobile phones and we have to take your money."

The story made recent headlines as an one of many examples of corrupted youth values, a troubling social issue.They then tied Mr. Li to his bedpost and stole 9,600 RMB in cash.

On Nov. 2, the crooked pair were arrested. Upon analysis of their internet usage, the cops discovered that they had contact gays in 5 different parts of China with the intention of traveling around and robbing gays.