Unit 6: Laws in different countries

University of the People

BUS 5511: Human Resource Management

Dr. Beverly Givens

December 22, 2021

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Introduction

The article contrasts and compares the U.S. employment law and China employment
law. (Posthuma, 2016)

Every government knows the potential for exploitation can harm workers, and
counterproductive employee behaviours can harm employers. Therefore, they use
legal protections to prevent worker exploitation.

Both countries provided Minimum Wage, Overtime Pay, Social Insurance, Payroll
Taxes Etc.

Compare and contrast an aspect of U.S. employment law with your Country of
Origin.

U.S. employment law

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ensures that American workers should receive
the minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, and they also ensure the Overtime salary is
paid, and the law protects minors and workers under 16. (Kurt, 2021)

Safety

The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 created specific safety provisions,
such as industry-specific guidelines for construction, maritime, and agricultural jobs.
However, self-employed individuals and those working on small family farms are
exempted from the law. (Kurt, 2021)

Health Coverage

The Affordable Care Act is used to make health insurance work at most medium and
large businesses. If the company has 50 or more full-time workers, they should offer
them a minimal level of health insurance. The full-time employee should work at least
30 hours a week on average. (Kurt, 2021)

Social Security

Social Security Act in 1935 provides retired and disabled Americans with a financial
safety net, with an average amount of $1,543 for retirees and $1,277 for citizens with
disabilities. (Kurt, 2021)

The cost is from the employers and employees who contribute 6.2% of the staff
member’s earnings. Self-employed individuals bear the total cost of the tax, which is
at 12.4% of their income. (Kurt, 2021)

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Unemployment Benefits

The Federal-State program offered the guideline with unemployment insurance and
jobless benefits, and it can help workers receive benefits for up to 26 weeks. European
countries are provided more benefits. Compared with that, Americans still can have a
few months of security. (Kurt, 2021)

Family Leave

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) in 1993 helped to support 12 weeks of
unpaid leave per year if they decide to stay home for their child’s birth or family
member illness or other causes. (Kurt, 2021)

However, the worker must work with the company for at least 12 months and 1250
hours in the past one year. The company has employed at least 50 employees within a
75-mile radius. (Kurt, 2021).

Employment-Based Discrimination

Civil Rights Act of 1964 is used for social justice in America. Title VII of the Act
made it illegal for businesses to discriminate based on “race, colour, religion, sex, or
national origin.” (Kurt, 2021)

Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 strengthens workplace rights, prohibiting wage
discrimination against women and minorities. Age Discrimination in Employment Act
of 1967 also helped workers 40 years and older workers. (Kurt, 2021)

China employment law

China employment law involves employment contracts, remuneration or salary,

workplace safety, procedures for negotiations, labour disputes, working hours,
protection from discrimination, compensation or wage regulations, training, social
insurance, and other legal responsibilities the employer must follow according to law.
The characters are as below:

• A rigorous termination system.

• The local policies and rules
• Moreover, the national laws can be different on the same issue.
• They have different interpretations on the same legal issues from the court and
arbitral tribunal. (Antoine Boquen, 2021)

According to Globalization Partners in 2021, the worker’s right in China is to protect

workers against exploitation and discrimination, and have the right as follows:

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 • Minimum wage
• Formal employment contracts
• A 40-hour week with fixed overtime rates
• Social security covers pensions, healthcare, unemployment, injuries, and
severance pay in case of termination
• Housing fund
• Annual leave

Contract

Employment contracts officially launch the law. There are three types of employment
contracts. (Globalization Partners, 2021)

• Fixed- term labor contracts:

Part-time Contract Full-time Contract

4 hours a day 8 hours a day
20 hours per week 40 hours per week
No severance pay Compensation in case of
termination
Only work-related injury Social security
insurance
Hourly-based remuneration Monthly-based remuneration

• Open/Indefinite contracts: It is more flexible and not determined on dates.

• Project-based contract: It is based on a specific task or project.

Probation Period

It allows employers to evaluate the employee's performance, which both sides agree
on and not exceed six months. (Globalization Partners, 2021)

Duration of the Contract Probation Period

3 months to 1 year Less than 1 month
1 year to 3 years Less than 2 months
3 years above Less than 6 months

Working Hours & Overtime

China’s Labor Contract Laws showed that employees could not work more than eight
hours a day and 44 hours a week on average. (Globalization Partners, 2021)

Employee Leaves

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It depends on the number of years an employee worked in the company.

Working Years Annual Leave

1 – 10 years 5 days
10 – 20 years 10 days
20 years above 15 days

Especially, for maternity leave, according to the regional regulations, female

employees have 98 days, and some provinces have 190 days. Paternity leave has 14
days. (Globalization Partners, 2021)

Minimum Wages

It is also according to the region’s living of development and cost of living. The
minimum wages are higher in the capital and developed cities. Such as, Shanghai’s
minimum wage per month is $358, and lower for second-tier or rural areas, such as
Anhui’s minimum wage per month is $166. (Globalization Partners, 2021)

Plus, there are five mandatory schemes in social contributions: pension (16%),
medical expenses (10%), unemployment (0.8%), maternity (0.8%), and work-related
incidents (0.2 – 1.9%); some companies also offered housing fund with 12%.
(Globalization Partners, 2021)

Unions

All other local, industry, enterprise-level unions and associations are under All-China
Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) 's control, which is used to protect employees'
interests and rights. (Globalization Partners, 2021)

Laws

Two primary China employment laws are to be considered as below:

1. 1995 Labor Law of the People’s Republic of China.
2. 2008 Labor Contract Law of the People’s Republic of China.

Moreover, these laws also should be concerned. (Antoine Boquen, 2021)

1. Law of the People’s Republic of China on Labor Dispute Mediation and
Arbitration.
2. Employment Promotion Law of the People’s Republic of China.
3. Labor Union Law of the People’s Republic of China.
4. Law of the People’s Republic of China on Work Safety.
5. Social Security Law.

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6. Opinion on Several Questions Regarding the Implementation of the Labor Law of
the People’s Republic of China; and,
7. Implementing Regulations for the Law of the People’s Republic of China on
Employment Contracts.

Identify the differences between the two laws and write an International
Corporate Employment Policy that covers the gaps.

There are country-wide federal laws and local laws with different standards. China
and the U.S. have standardized federal labour laws to protect workers. (Demidov,
2019)

Some laws are designed to require a suitable working condition and protect workers’
rights, and some laws are designed to prohibit discrimination. However, the labour
laws of one country generally do not apply in another country. (Richard, 2020)

There is no federal law that requires paid family leave in the private sector in the US.
However, China does require this type of benefit. China provides 128 days of paid
family leave. (Jia, Dong & Song, 2018)

The U.S. designates holidays but does not require payment for all workers on those
days. However, China paid holidays are based primarily on social and cultural history,
such as New Year’s Day, Lunar New Year’s Day, Qing Ming Festival, Labor Day,
Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, National Day. (Yang, 2017)

Also, China labour laws provide employees with paid vacation days according to their
years in the company. (Yang, 2017)

The U.S. does not require a written contract, but China does require a formal
employment written contract.

Include an explanation of the additional steps needed before actual

implementation.

The company needs to have extra training before the actual implementation.
Employees need to understand the local law and policies and apply for visas for the
employees and settle their medical insurance.

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Reference:

Antoine Boquen. (Sep 29, 2021) New Horizons Global Partners. The Ultimate Guide
to China Labor Law and Employment Regulations.
https://nhglobalpartners.com/china-labour-law/

Globalization Partners (February 08, 2021) China Labor Laws: The Complete Guide.
https://www.globalization-partners.com/blog/china-labor-laws-the-complete-
guide/#gref

Daniel Kurt (October 31, 2021) 8 Federal Laws That Protect Employees –
Investopedia.
https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/120914/8-federal-laws-
protect-employees.asp

Richard A. Posthuma (January 02, 2020) Beijing Law Review.Comparison of Labor

Laws in China, Russia, and the US.
https://www.scirp.org/journal/paperinformation.aspx?paperid=98174

Posthuma, R. A., Flores, G. L., Dworkin, J. B., & Pavel, S. (2016). Social Context
and Employment Lawsuit Dispute Resolution. International Journal of Conflict
Management, 27, 547-569.
https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCMA-10-2015-0072

Jia, N., Dong, X., & Song, Y. P. (2018). Paid Maternity Leave and Breastfeeding in
Urban China. Feminist Economics, 24, 31-53.
https://doi.org/10.1080/13545701.2017.1380309

Demidov, N. V. (2019). Criteria for the Formation of the Labour-Law Branch in

Russia. Russian Juridical Journal, 128, 118-131.

Yang, G. (2017). The China Employment Law Guide. Seattle, Washington DC: TCK
Publishing.