China is really worried about unemployment. Here's what it's doing to avoid mass layoffs

The Chinese government wants to do whatever it can to protect the economy in 2020. It's got an enormous task ahead of it. Beijing has made clear that the world's second largest economy cannot spiral into a slump and risk mass layoffsas it tangles with rising debt, cooling domestic demand and an ongoing trade war with the United States.

That's particularly important this year because it marks the conclusion of the government's 13th Five-Year Plan,during which it promised to establish a "moderately prosperous society" and end poverty. Senior members of the Communist Party's Politburo — the seven most powerful men in China — said last week that all efforts must be taken to achieve those goals in 2020. In recent weeks, the government has bombarded the economy with a wave of stimulus measures, from tariff reductions that could help soothe the pain from rising prices, to rate cuts that could fuel more bank lending.

Authorities are also amping up the language they're using to describe the situation. China's State Council last month called on local governments to "go to all lengths" to prevent massive job losses this year — what it characterized as the country's top policy priority.

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