loopholes in paid leave law need closing

Young female Chinese university students protest outside the Hubei Human Resources and Social Security Department over the requirement of gynecological examinations as part of the civil servant exam in Wuhan city, central China's Hubei province, on November 26, 2012. [Photo/IC]

About 50 percent of Chinese employees choose not to take paid leave, fearing it will jeopardize their chances of future promotion or give their employers the impression they are lazy, according to a recent nationwide survey conducted by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. Comments:

Employees should be made aware that they are legally entitled to paid leave. However, the regulations covering paid leave need strengthening to stop employees giving up their right because they fear they won't be paid.

People's Daily, July 28

Apart from the lack of effective supervision and enforcement of the law, the Regulations on Paid Annual Leave of Employees have offered loopholes that are taken advantage of by employers. For example, some articles stipulate that employees may not be allowed to take annual leave due to job requirements. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the regulations concerning workers' rights. Besides, the outdated mentality of some local governments and companies should be abandoned, because not allowing their employees to rest will only lead to less efficiency.

Guangzhou Daily, July 28

It requires more than rules on paper and critical public voices to effectively safeguard the legitimate right of employees to paid leave. Compared with just administrative regulations alone, combining them with incentives tends to be more pragmatic and active. Therefore, the authorities should introduce an incentive system with tangible and forcible measures to attract and encourage companies, especially small and medium-sized private enterprises to take the initiative in ensuring their employees enjoy their right to paid leave.

China Youth Daily, July 28