New employment workers given greater legal protection

China has achieved fruitful results in protecting the rights of flexible workers and people serving in new forms of employment such as food deliverymen and women and ride-hailing drivers, which is of great importance to the realization of high-quality and fuller employment, and also social stability.

According to a report submitted for review on Monday to the ongoing session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China currently has more than 200 million flexible workers. Government at all levels has optimized services and reached fruitful results in protecting these workers' rights by publishing guidelines, improving working standards and releasing explorative policies on social insurance.?

According to the report, local human resources bureaus have paid regular visits to companies and got to know workers' payment details, their working hours and companies' relationships with their staff. Local authorities have also tightened management of platforms' algorithms and urged employers to standardize their payments to the workers, to lower the commission rate and set a limit on working hours.

Wu Xiuzhang, vice-minister of human resources and social security, who reported to the session on Monday, said that the human resources ministry has figured out new ways for workers serving in new forms of employment to get work-related injury insurance, with the premium being calculated by orders. The new form of work-related injuries insurance for workers of the kind started in 2022 and as of October 2025, 11 pilot companies and 17 pilot provinces get involved in, benefiting 23.25 million workers.?

Wu said that the government has loosened the limits for flexible workers and workers in new forms of employment to join the national pension insurance and medical insurance. As of the end of 2024, there were 70.57 million flexible workers being covered by basic pension insurance, and 66.16 million covered by basic medical insurance.?

He said that the ministry has made efforts to improve job services for flexible workers and people in new forms of employment and to assist their entrepreneurship with low-interest loans, subsidies and reduced taxes, also organizing skills training programs to help workers to improve their skills.?

In addition, the ministry has tightened management of wage arrears for flexible workers and people in new forms of employment, and worked with justice departments to publish example cases of labor disputes.?

He said that although workers' rights have become more firmly secured, they still face problems like unstable payment and insufficient rights protection, requiring the government to further improve efforts to expand social insurance coverage and legal support.

According to the report, the human resources ministry will continue to tighten its supervision on flexible workers' rights of payment, right to rest and workplace safety, and explore new ways to let people in new forms of employment engage in collective bargaining.?

Expanding the coverage of social insurance for flexible workers and people in new forms of employment is also an important job for the ministry, who will increase the flexibility and inclusivity of the social insurance payment.?

Also, the ministry will improve employment guidance for companies and guide workers to protect their rights in rational, reasonable and legal ways. The ministry will step up efforts to publish regulations on protecting the working rights of people in new forms of employment and release regulations to standardize employers and platforms' employment practices.