On September 16, 2010, "UC-RUC International Symposium on Family and Labor Economics" co-sponsored by School of Labor and Human Resources Renmin University of China and the Beijing Center of University of Chicago was opened in Yifu Hall, Renmin University of China. During the meeting, famous domestic experts and scholars from many famous Universities at home and abroad like University of Chicago, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Renmin University of China, Beijing Normal University, Tsinghua University, Peking University and Central University of Finance and Economics shared research results and communicated with each other on the theme of labor economics frontier issues related to family. Professor Gary S. Becker and Professor James J. Heckman also brought their latest research results to discuss with attendants on the theme of “the Past, Present and Future of Labor Economics”.

At 10:00 in the morning Beijing time, Professor Zeng Xiangquan, Director of CIER and SLHR and James J. Heckman, the professor of University of Chicago, America and the recipient of Nobel Prize for Economics in 2000 made the opening speech. Professor Zeng Xiangquan briefly introduced the background, the theme and the attendants of the seminar, extended welcome and express thanks. Professor Zeng also expressed the hope that cooperation with University of Chicago. Professor James Heckman said this seminar offered a platform to academic communication and cooperation, a valuable opportunity to promote labor economics research related to family issues. Pro. Heckman expressed the hope that further communication and cooperation with SLHR and other Chinese scholars as well.

Gary S. Becker, the professor of University of Chicago, America and the recipient of Nobel Prize for Economics in 1992, make a speech on “Old Age Support, the Formation of Children’s Preferences, and Investments in Children’s Human Capital”. He pointed that parents consciously cultivated their children to care others in order to get children’s supporting in old age.

Professor James Heckman and Professor Yi Junjian made a theme presentation on "Early Health Shocks，Parental Responses and Child Outcomes”. They established a theory model that analysis how diseases in early childhood influence the formation of human capital. They found out that diseases in early childhood have negative impact on their health, cognitive competence and personality as they growing up. What’s more, these diseases will affect parents’ expectation to their children, but not to change sensitivity to parents’ act and parents’ feeling to children.

"Parents’ Unemployment and Children’s Health—based on the research to the data of workers laid off from state-owned enterprises” by Professor Zhao Zhong, "Sex Ratio, Crime and other Social Influence” by Professor Li Hongbin from Tsinghua University, “Change of Chinese Urban Gender Wage Gap between 1995 to 2007” by Li Shi from Beijing Normal University and “The Influence of Cultural Revolution to Reinvestment in Human Capital” by Zhang Junlin from Chinese University of Hong Kong were presented in the period of the seminar. In the rest of the seminar, many experts and scholars were in intense discussion and exchanged of views on the presented issues above.