CHINA: An Introduction to Employment (PRC Firms)

Observation and Preview on the Labour and Employment Points in China in 2025

Under the influence of multiple factors, such as COVID-19 and the continued economic downturn, labour issues are becoming an increasing focus of attention, which poses a great challenge for enterprises, employees, and the government. This article compiles the key points of concern in the field of labour and employment in 2024, and offers forward-looking suggestions to business managers.

New rules on delayed retirement to be implemented from January 2025

The Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on Incrementally Raising the Statutory Retirement Age will come into force on 1 January 2025, and the Measures of the State Council on Incrementally Raising the Statutory Retirement Age further defines that the statutory retirement age shall be incrementally raised in accordance with the principles of “small-step adjustments, flexible implementation, advancement by category, and overall coordination”.

The decision to delay retirement has brought new challenges to the human resource (HR) management of enterprises, and it is necessary not only to comprehensively sort out and determine management response measures in accordance with the new provisions, but also to pay attention to the follow-up relevant policies and make timely adjustments.

The boom of Chinese enterprises going abroad for business brings new challenges to cross-border HR management compliance

Going abroad for business was bursting at the seams in 2024. As Chinese enterprises go abroad for business, they also drive Chinese talents, culture and management policies to go overseas, and the issues of compliance and disputes in cross-border employment have gradually come to the forefront, especially in the areas of employment mode, recognition of labour relationship, social security issues, recognition of work injuries, jurisdiction and application of laws. Therefore, it is recommended that enterprises should strengthen their compliance system in the aforementioned aspects in accordance with the domestic and overseas regulations in the subsequent process of going abroad, so as to reduce unnecessary risks of employment.

Labour compliance in the platform and cyberstar economies in the spotlight

In recent years, the development of platform economy and cyberstar economy has been actively encouraged and strongly supported by Chinses state, and its importance in the economic system has been increasing, but the process has also given rise to a lot of compliance problems, including but not limited to:

• circumventing labour regulation through fictitious business scenarios and packaging of employment relationships;
• confusion of property rights ownership of the “IP” and their carrier operation accounts; and
• tax evasion, etc.

Against the background that Chinese State has begun to establish and improve the regulatory rules and systems related to the new industry in a phased manner, enterprises in the platform economy and the cyberstar economy should take into account the actual scenarios of business operation and employment management, in accordance with the law, establish employment relationships with employees, deal with remuneration and benefits, and improve the compliance management system.

Frequent salary cuts in financial institutions

Influenced by various aspects, the phenomenon of salary cuts in financial institutions was widespread in 2024, and many financial institutions have made wide-ranging downward adjustments to their employees’ salaries, bonuses, etc, and even recovered and withheld bonuses that had already been paid out. This brought about a series of impacts and conflicts, especially the accidental death of a female employee of a financial institution, which triggered concerns from all sectors of the society.

In 2025, we recommend that financial institutions pay more attention to HR compliance, optimise remuneration and benefits systems, improve accountability mechanisms related to “clawbacks”, and pay close attention to the economic and mental health of employees.

Layoffs continue to occur frequently

In recent years, layoffs have long since spread from foreign companies in China to joint ventures, private companies and state-owned enterprises, with high-paying, cutting-edge industries such as the financial, medical and high-tech sectors also being the hardest hit. There have even been several films featuring layoffs. Violent and illegal layoffs by some enterprises have led to frequent labour disputes, group public opinions, employee mental problems and mass incidents.

We suggest that enterprises should pay attention to compliance in layoffs and implement humane solutions as far as possible, pay close attention to the status of employees and resolve labour conflicts in a timely manner. When labour conflicts are encountered, long-term consideration should be given to responding to the disputes appropriately, so as to avoid further expansion of conflicts and injuries.

Increase in the number of cases in which employees request the continuation of their labour contracts

Due to the increased difficulty of re-employment, more and more employees are choosing to sue for the continuation of their employment contracts after they have been illegally terminated by the enterprises, rather than claiming compensations. Once the judgement is made to continue the employment contract, the enterprise will also face the responsibility of paying back salaries and benefits. In such disputes, most courts are more rigorous in their examination of the company’s evidence, and will uphold the claim for continuation of the labour contract if there is no objective impossibility of continuation or a breakdown in the relationship of trust between the parties.

We recommend that enterprises try to choose a consensual approach in dealing with labour relations, be prudent in unilaterally terminating or ending labour contracts, and avoid aggravating employees’ emotions. In layoffs, enterprises can also consider providing employees with re-employment counselling, job search support, job referrals, psychological counselling and other assistance.

Enterprises need to pay more attention to the mental health of their employees

The continuing impact of the COVID-19 and economic issues has brought employee mental health issues to the forefront and posed new challenges to enterprises’ HR management. Employees with mental health problems are more likely to experience reduced work performance, workplace safety issues, communication barriers, disengagement, etc, on the one hand, and stricter protection under the law on the other.

We recommend that enterprises take a rational view of mental health issues and optimise management practices to prevent mental illness in their workforce. In the case of employees with mental illnesses, it is necessary to fully respect their privacy and protect their rights and interests, and try to deal with the labour relations of such employees through consensus and standardised procedures, taking into account the actual working conditions of the employees.

The frequency of extreme events places greater requirements on enterprises’ HR management

After the end of the COVID-19, the economy continued to languish, and the work and lives of employees were greatly affected. And while a grain of sand of the times falls on an individual’s head, it can become a mountain that crushes him or her. Individuals faced with mounting labour conflicts are often more likely to lose control and lead to serious consequences, such as extreme events like suicide, deletion of data or destruction of enterprises’ assets.

We recommend that enterprises pay high attention to the risk of extreme events, give maximum respect and attention to their employees, and optimise the protection of information and assets both managerially and technologically to adequately prepare for all types of extreme events.

In 2025, we recommend that enterprises assess their HR management policies and risks with a broader, scientific perspective and adopt a more prudent and sustainable attitude to properly respond to the new situation.

2025年中国劳动用工要点观察及展望

在疫情与经济持续低迷等多重因素的影响下，劳资问题越来越成为关注焦点，这为企业、员工、政府都带来了很大的挑战。本文梳理了2024年劳动用工领域的关注要点，并向企业管理者提出了前瞻性的建议。

延迟退休新规将于2025年1月起执行

《全国人民代表大会常务委员会关于实施渐进式延迟法定退休年龄的决定》将自2025年1月1日起施行，《国务院关于渐进式延迟法定退休年龄的办法》进一步确定了“小步调整、弹性实施、分类推进、统筹兼顾”的原则，渐进式推行延迟退休。

延迟退休决定为企业的人力资源管理带来全新挑战，既要根据新规定全面梳理、确定管理上的应对措施，也要时刻关注后续配套政策及时进行调整。

出海热潮带来了跨境人力资源管理合规的新挑战

出海在2024年爆火。中国企业的出海也带动了中国人才、文化与管理政策的出海，跨境用工的合规、纠纷等问题也逐渐凸显，尤其容易发生在用工模式、劳动关系认定、社保问题、工伤认定、管辖与法律适用等方面。因此，建议企业在后续出海进程中结合境内外规定在前述方面加强合规体系建设，减少不必要的用工风险。

平台经济与网红经济的劳动用工合规成为焦点

近年来，平台经济与网红经济的发展获得了国家的积极鼓励和大力支持，在经济体系中的重要性越来越高，但是过程中也产生了很多合规问题，包括但不限于：通过虚构业务场景、包装用工关系等方式规避劳动监管；“IP”及其承载运营账户的产权归属混乱；偷逃税款等。

在国家开始阶段性建立和完善新业态相关监管规则和体系的背景下，平台经济与网红经济中的企业应当结合业务经营和用工管理的实际场景，依法与从业人员建立用工关系，处理薪酬与福利待遇，并完善合规管理体系。

金融机构降薪现象频发

受各方面影响，2024年金融机构普遍出现降薪现象，不少金融机构大范围下调了员工的工资、奖金等，甚至对已发放的奖金进行追索扣回。这带来了一系列的影响与冲突，尤其是某金融机构一名女员工意外离世事件，引发了社会各界关注。

我们建议金融机构在2025年更加关注人力资源合规建设，优化薪酬与福利体系，完善“追索扣回”相关的追责机制，并高度关注员工的经济与精神健康情况。

裁员现象依然频发

近年来，裁员早已经从在华外企蔓延至合资企业、民企和国有企业，其中金融、医疗和高科技行业等高薪、尖端行业也是重灾区。甚至还出现了几部以裁员为主题的电影。一些企业暴力、违规裁员，导致劳动争议、群体舆论、员工精神问题、群体事件等频发。

我们建议企业在裁员中应当重视合规操作，并尽可能执行人性化方案，密切关注员工状态，及时化解劳资矛盾。在遇到劳资矛盾时，应长远考虑妥善应对纠纷，避免矛盾与伤害继续扩大。

员工要求继续履行劳动合同的案件增加

由于再就业难度增加，越来越多的劳动者在被企业解除劳动合同后选择起诉要求继续履行劳动合同，而非索要赔偿金。一旦被判决继续履行劳动合同，企业还将面临补发工资、福利的责任。在此类争议中，多数法院对企业的证据审查较为严格，如不存在客观上无法继续履行的情形或双方信任关系破裂等情况，则会支持继续履行的诉求。

我们建议企业在处理员工劳动关系时尽量选择协商一致的方式，审慎单方解除或终止劳动合同，并避免激化员工的情绪。在裁员中，还可以为员工提供再就业辅导、求职支持、工作推荐、心理疏导等帮助。

企业需要更加关注员工的精神健康问题

疫情与经济问题的持续影响，让员工精神健康问题变得更加突出，对企业人力资源管理也提出了新挑战。员工出现精神健康问题后，一方面有更大可能出现工作状态下降、职场安全问题、沟通障碍、脱离岗位等；另一方面也受到法律更严格的保护。

我们建议企业理性看待精神健康问题，优化管理方式以预防员工精神疾病的产生。对已经罹患精神疾病的员工，需要充分尊重员工隐私并保障员工权益，结合员工实际工作情况，尽量通过协商一致的方式妥善处理这类员工的劳动关系，并规范办理相关手续。

极端事件的频发对企业人力资源管理提出了更高要求

疫情结束后，经济持续萎靡不振，企业员工的工作和生活受到了很大的影响。而时代的一粒沙落在个人头上，却可能成为压垮个人的一座山。个人在面临不断加剧的劳资冲突中，往往更容易失控，并导致严重后果，例如自杀、删除数据或破坏企业资产等极端事件。

我们建议企业高度关注极端事件发生的风险，给予员工最大限度的尊重与关注，并从管理和技术上优化信息资产的保护，充分做好各类极端事件的防范。

2025年，我们建议企业用更广阔、科学的视野来评估自身的人力资源管理政策与风险，并采取更加谨慎与可持续发展的态度来妥善应对新局面。