Chinese citizens planning to work abroad must sign labor contracts
with their overseas employers before leaving the country, according
to a new law.
The Regulation on Intermediary Organs Specializing in Overseas
Employment is designed to bring Chinese working abroad under the
protection of labor laws and labor departments in their destination
country.
China's traditional practice has been let laborers sign contracts
with domestic intermediary organs and economic contracts with
overseas employers. However, in industrial disputes, Chinese
working abroad were neither protected by the law nor could they ask
labor departments to negotiate with their overseas
counterparts.
This legal loophole has encouraged a number of intermediary bodies
to illegally obtain huge profits from laborers working abroad.
To
rectify the intermediary market, the regulation jointly issued by
the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, the Ministry of Public
Security and the State Administration for Industry and Commerce has
for the first time defined "Overseas Employment" and required a
disbursement fund of at least 500,000 yuan (US$60,241).
According to the regulation, only after Chinese citizens sign work
contracts with their overseas employers and receive remuneration
for their work done abroad can the employment be called "Overseas
Employment".
The disbursement fund will be mainly used as a reserve to pay fines
when intermediary bodies violate the regulation or to compensate
for clients' losses caused by misconduct.
Meanwhile, the regulation, which comes into effect on July 1, also
requires contracts between clients and intermediary organs and the
work contracts between Chinese working abroad and their overseas
employers to be filed in China's provincial labor and social
security departments.
An
annual inspection system is to be established under which all
licensed intermediary organs must hand in operation reports to
provincial labor and social departments to receive an annual
evaluation of business operations and legal matters.
To
date, there are more than 50 intermediary bodies with business
licenses issued by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security.
Since 1992, over 100,000 Chinese have left the country to work
abroad. Most of them are in Japan, the Republic of Korea, Southeast
Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, America and some island
countries in the Pacific Ocean.
The industries they work in include textiles, machine
manufacturing, construction, aquiculture, catering, nursing,
medical treatment and sanitation.
(China
Daily June 30, 2002)