§19 · 19 tips

On the job, leaving a job and workplace injury

How are overtime pay and annual leave calculated, how much compensation should you get if you are laid off, and how is a workplace injury recognized and paid?

Tips from this section that apply in the United States. This section describes legal rules, mostly mainland China’s. It is general information, not legal advice; for your own case, talk to a lawyer.

Damage from dust, noise and toxic chemicals can't be reversed: the employer must supply protective gear, and you can refuse work that has no protective measures

Pneumoconiosis (dust disease of the lungs), noise-induced deafness and chemical eye burns are all statutory occupational diseases, and once lungs and hearing are damaged they can't be cured. You have the right to know what hazards the post has, and the right to ask the employer for protective facilities and protective gear. You can decline work that has no protection. If the employer cuts your pay or dismisses you for that, it does not count.

High value
Evidence A
Buys life

Don't believe "get to your workstation and it counts as a work injury": if you suddenly feel unwell, call 120 (China's ambulance number) first, don't rush to clock in

Rushing to the company when you suddenly feel unwell does not get you any extra money. A deemed work injury (视同工伤) requires that you fall ill during working hours and at your post, and falling ill on the way without reaching work was never covered. If emergency treatment lasts longer than 48 hours, that does not count either. The few dozen minutes lost trying to meet the conditions are paid for with your own chance of survival.

Top value
Evidence A
Buys life

If you are bullied, insulted or obstructed at work over a long time, don't just endure it: write it down and keep evidence first, then take the complaint, police or arbitration route that fits

People who are bullied at work have about a 60% higher risk of heart disease and stroke later, and the more they are bullied, the higher the risk. People who are bullied are about twice as likely to have thoughts of suicide a few years later. Being shouted at and put down is not a small thing that passes if you grit your teeth.

Moderate value
Evidence B
Buys life

Mainland China only 16 tips

These tips describe mainland-China rules and do not apply in the United States; they are here for people living in China.

Overtime pay comes in three rates, 1.5 times, 2 times and 3 times; if it isn't paid, complain to labor inspection (劳动监察), and if it is paid late, a further 50% to 100% is added
Overtime on an ordinary working day is paid at 1.5 times your wage. Overtime on a rest day, when you are not given time off in exchange, is paid at 2 times. Work on a statutory holiday such as New Year's Day, Spring Festival, Labor Day or National Day is paid at 3 times, and it cannot be replaced with time off. If the company doesn't pay, complain to labor inspection. If it still doesn't pay after being ordered to pay by a deadline, the employer must add a further half to a full amount of what it owes.
Annual leave is 5, 10 or 15 days by your total years worked, and unused days are paid at 300% of the daily wage
If your total years of work across all employers add up to at least 1 year but under 10, you get 5 days of annual leave a year. At 10 years it is 10 days, and at 20 years it is 15 days. Years carry over when you change jobs. If the employer can't schedule your leave and you agree not to take it, those days are paid at 3 times the daily wage. Once you sign a form "voluntarily giving up annual leave," all that is left is your normal wage.
The probation period has a legal maximum, pay may not fall below 80%, and probation can be agreed only once
For a contract of under 1 year, probation is at most 1 month. For 1 to 3 years, at most 2 months. For more than 3 years, at most 6 months. A company can put you on probation only once, and it is illegal to have you do it again after you move to a different post once you're confirmed. Probation pay may not be less than 80% of the lowest grade for the same post or of the wage in the contract, and not below the local minimum wage.
If you are laid off, work out N first: one month's pay for each full year, and under six months counts as half a month
Severance pay (经济补偿) the company owes you when it lets you go is worked out like this: one month's pay for a full year, a period of at least six months but under a year counts as a year, and under six months is half a month. The monthly pay here is the average of your last 12 months before leaving, with bonuses, allowances and subsidies all included. If your pay is more than 3 times the local average monthly wage for the previous year, it is capped at 3 times, and at most 12 years are counted.
If the company dismisses you without giving 30 days' notice, it also owes one more month's pay
If the company dismisses you because you can't do your job after an illness, because you are not able to do the work, or because circumstances have changed greatly, and it did not give 30 days' written notice in advance, it must pay one more month's wage on top of N. This is the commonly mentioned N+1. When you negotiate, list this one month separately, and don't let the company count it inside N.
If the company ends the contract unlawfully, the compensation is twice the severance standard
If the company ended the contract unlawfully, the compensation (赔偿金) is double the severance standard, which is the commonly mentioned 2N. Whether it was an unlawful termination depends on the specific facts. Ask legal aid or a lawyer first, and then decide whether to negotiate with the company or go to arbitration.
Don't sign "resigned voluntarily for personal reasons": once you sign, there is no N
If you sign to admit "resigned voluntarily for personal reasons," severance pay and unemployment insurance benefits usually both disappear. Quitting on your own is not among the situations in which severance is paid, except when the company is at fault, such as owing wages or not paying social insurance. You don't have to sign the same day; sleep on it first.
Before leaving, save your pay slips, attendance records, labor contract, social insurance records and chats
In disputes such as dismissal and wage deductions, the employer has the burden of proof, but for overtime you have to prove it first, and the employer only needs to keep its wage records for two years. Once you hand back your computer and accounts, you can't get these materials. With your pay slips, attendance records, social insurance records and original chat records in hand, you have something to rely on when the employer denies it.
Before taking a job with dust, noise or chemicals, check whether the contract states the hazards; the 3 occupational health checkups are arranged and paid for by the employer
When you sign, the employer must truthfully write into the contract what occupational disease hazards the post has, how you will be protected, and what benefits you get. If it hid them from you, you can refuse to do the job, and the employer cannot dismiss you for that. The 3 occupational health checkups, before starting the job, while on the job and on leaving the job, are arranged and paid for by the employer. If the leaving checkup has not been done, the employer cannot end your contract.
If you are hurt at work or hit on the way to or from work, the first thing is to apply for a work-injury determination (工伤认定), and if the employer doesn't file, file it yourself
An injury at work counts as a work injury. Being hit on the way to or from work, when the main fault is not yours, also counts. But without a work-injury determination, medical costs, wages that continue to be paid while you recover, and the disability allowance are all lost. The employer should file within 30 days. If it doesn't, you, your family or the labor union can file with the social insurance administrative department yourselves within one year.
If your employer did not pay work-injury insurance for you, you still get the work-injury benefits, paid in full by the employer at the same standard
If your employer did not pay work-injury insurance for you, you still get the work-injury benefits. They are simply paid in full by the employer, for the same items and at the same standard, not a cent less. Not enrolling is an added penalty for the employer: it is ordered to make up the payments, charged a late fee of five ten-thousandths (万分之五) a day, and if overdue it is also fined 1 to 3 times the amount owed. "The company didn't buy work-injury insurance, so it can't pay you" is false.
Once the injury is stable, get a work-capacity assessment, because the disability grade converts directly into money
Once the injury is stable, go for a work-capacity assessment (劳动能力鉴定), and the grade converts directly into money. The one-time disability allowance is worked out on your own wage: Grade 5 is 18 months, Grade 6 is 16 months, Grade 7 is 13 months, Grade 8 is 11 months, Grade 9 is 9 months and Grade 10 is 7 months. Before the assessment result comes out, don't sign an agreement to "settle it once and for all."
Tell apart the three payments for a work-related death: the funeral allowance, the pension for dependent relatives and the one-time work-death allowance
A death at work brings three payments, so don't discuss only one. The funeral allowance (丧葬补助金) is 6 months of the local average monthly wage of employees for the previous year. The pension for dependent relatives is paid monthly based on the deceased's own wage: 40% a month for a spouse and 30% a month for each other relative. The one-time work-death allowance (一次性工亡补助金) is 20 times the previous year's per capita disposable income of urban residents nationwide, and that is a single nationwide figure.
When you leave, ask the employer for a certificate of separation that states the contract term, the leaving date, the post and the years of work
Whether you were dismissed, your contract ended or you resigned, the employer must give you a separation certificate (离职证明) when you leave, and transfer your personnel file and social insurance within 15 days. The certificate should state the contract term, the leaving date, the post and how many years you worked there. You need it to register as unemployed. If the employer won't give it, the labor department will order it to correct that, and if you suffer a loss because of it, the employer must pay you for it.
When you get a severance payment, check the personal income tax first: the part within 3 times the local average wage for the previous year is tax-free, the rest is taxed separately and not added to the year's pay
For the lump-sum payment you get for ending a labor contract, the part within 3 times the local average employee wage for the previous year pays no personal income tax. The part above that is taxed separately and is not added to the year's wages. If the employer added the whole sum to the month's pay and withheld tax, first ask the employer to explain, and then call 12366 (China's tax service hotline) to ask the tax bureau.
When you move to another city for work, transfer your pension and medical insurance to the new place and keep accumulating contribution years; don't withdraw
When you move to another city for work, both your pension and medical insurance can follow you, and the years you paid before keep adding up. If you haven't reached the age to collect a pension, you can't withdraw your contributions by canceling the insurance. If medical insurance payments lapse for more than 3 months, you may have to wait up to 6 months for reimbursement in the new place, so don't leave a long gap.