The ''Labour Contract Law of the People's Republic of China'' () is the primary source of
labour law
Labour laws (also spelled as labor laws), labour code or employment laws are those that mediate the relationship between workers, employing entities, trade unions, and the government. Collective labour law relates to the tripartite relationship be ...
in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
and went into effect on January 1, 2008, following a series of staff-
sacking scandal
A scandal can be broadly defined as the strong social reactions of outrage, anger, or surprise, when accusations or rumours circulate or appear for some reason, regarding a person or persons who are perceived to have transgressed in some way a ...
s in many companies. The
is the responsible government department for administrating this law.
The Law
While the enforcement of the law and its efficacity is sometimes questioned, the labor contract law promised to enable workers to get their employment granted only on basis of a contract, provide guidelines for standing working hour regulations of maximum 40 hours per week, non-tolerance for delayed payment of wages, relaxations in terms of paid leave etc.
Background
The
All-China Federation of Trade Unions
The All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) is the national trade union center and people's organization of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the largest trade union in the world with 302 million members in 1,713,000 primary tra ...
(ACFTU) had the major role in advancing the Labor Contract Law.
The ACFTU drafted the law and proposed it to the
National People's Congress
The National People's Congress (NPC) is the highest organ of state power of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The NPC is the only branch of government in China, and per the principle of unified power, all state organs from the Sta ...
.
The NPC conducted research trips to regions with labor-intensive industries like Guangdong.
After multiple rounds of formal discussions and informal negotiations and consultations, the law was passed.
Amendment
The Standing Committee of the
11th National People's Congress
The 11th National People's Congress (NPC) met for a 5-year term, from 2008 to 2013. It held five annual two week plenary sessions during this period. It succeeded the 10th National People's Congress. There were 2,987 deputies elected to the ...
adopted the decision on the Revision of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China ('Amendment'). The Amendment will take effect July 1, 2013, with the claimed intention to provide better protection to workers employed by labor dispatching agencies.
Highlighted requirements include:
*
Labor dispatch agency must have a minimum registered capital of no less than RMB 2,000,000;
* Operate from a permanent business premise with facilities that are suitable to conduct its business;
* have internal dispatch rules that are compliant with the relevant laws and administrative regulations;
* Satisfy other conditions as prescribed by laws and administrative regulations; and
* Apply for an administrative license and obtain approval from the relevant labor authorities.
All
labor dispatch agencies established after July 1, 2013, will need to meet these new local labor law requirements before they can start the company registration process. Existing agencies that are already licensed have until July 1, 2014, to meet all local labor law requirements before renewing their business registration.
['']The National Law Review
''The National Law Review'' is an American law journal, daily legal news website and legal analysis content-aggregating database. In 2020 and 2021, ''The National Law Review'' published over 20,000 legal news articles and experienced an uptick ...
''
See also
* ''
Labour Law of the People's Republic of China''
References
External links
Text of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of Chinaincludes supplementary materials
Labor Contract Law - The People's Republic of China Labor Contract Law Study Sitein Chinese
China Enacts New Employment Law Affecting Employers Who Do Not Directly Employ Their Workers
{{Economy of China
Laws of China
Labor relations in China
Chinese labour law
2007 in Chinese law