Flights wait for no one

　　ALL flights with China Southern Airlines started following strict time schedules Sunday closing check-in counters 30 minutes before take-off. It now also forbids boarding 15 minutes ahead of take-off to secure normal flight operations. A survey showed that a total of 5,562 passengers were late for flights departing Guangzhou in August, keeping other passengers waiting by delaying take-off.

　　Jobless rate controls

　　GUANGDONG Province will try to create 700,000 new jobs each year over the following three years and keep the jobless rate within four percent, the provincial labor and social security administration announced Friday. With an annual provincial economic growth of 10 percent, 600,000 new positions would be created. The other 100,000 jobs could be achieved by providing community services, officials said.

　　22 new parks for GZ

　　GUANGZHOU is planning to build 22 new parks within the next five years, local media reported yesterday. By 2005, 30 percent of the city’s downtown area will be covered by greenery, the municipal landscape authorities said.