Provision on the Administration of Internships for Vocational School Students : Article 19

LAW DETAILS

LINK TO FULL TEXT OF LAW:

http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_xwfb/s271/201801/t20180112_324419.html

SUMMARY OR KEY PROVISION OF THE LAW

The vocational school or employer shall not charge the intern students money in the name of deposit, commissions for introducing the students working at the position requiring them to undertake all duties, managerial fees or any other internship fees. They shall neither withhold the students' identity card, nor demand they make warranty, nor take away their properties with other excuses.

SUMMARY OF INTERPRETATIONS VARIANCE

N/A

LEGAL CONSEQUENCES FOR NON-COMPLIANCE

Article 84 of Labour Contract Law. Where an employer violates this law by detaining the resident identity cards or other certificates of the workers, the Labour Administrative Department shall order the employer to return the ID and certificates to the workers within a time limit and shall punish the employer according to the relevant laws.

Where an employer violates this law by collecting money and property from workers in the name of guaranty or any other excuses, the Labour Administrative Department shall order the employer to return the said property to the workers within a time limit and fine the employer no less than 500 yuan but no more than 2,000 yuan for each worker. If any damage is caused to the workers, the employer shall be liable for compensation.

When a worker dissolves or terminates the labour contract in pursuance of law, if the employer retains the archives or other articles of the workers, it shall be punished according to the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

IMPLEMENTATION AND IMPROVEMENT GUIDANCE

COMPLIANCE IMPLEMENTATION AND IMPROVEMENT STEPS

Evaluate The Condition:

1. Management should develop a list of all jobs in the factory that have been assigned to interns.  If the factory is large it would be ideal to have jobs organized by area or production process.

2. From the list of jobs in the factory, management should also have a list of which interns are assigned to each job and specifically identify the interns in each job.

3. Review any existing policy, procedure or practice (formal or informal) that requires money in the name of deposit or commission be paid or the withholding of identity cards. Any related policies, procedures and/or practices undertaken by the vocational school must also be reviewed. This may require interviewing existing student workers.

Take Action:

1. In the event of any money being taken in the name of deposit or commission, this shall be returned to the applicable workers ASAP. This applies to both the factory and vocational school.

2. Where ID's are being kept, copies should be prepared for worker files and their ID's should be returned ASAP.  This applies to both the factory and vocational school.

3. Create or updated existing polices and procedures  stating that costs or any fees cannot be directly requested from any intern working in the factory. If the factory has a relationship with any other company to aid in the recruitment or management of interns with vocational schools, then any costs associated with these relationships need to be covered by the factory directly.

4. Ensure all applicable staff and school partners are made aware of the new or updated policies and procedures. School partners must also update their own policies and procedures.

COMMON CHALLENGES

1. The factory has charged the intern students deposits, and withheld their identity card or equivalent documents. Lack of awareness around gender issues and the law with regards to recruitment. Immature systems to evaluate performance as it relates to advancement.

2. The vocational school may also be charging such commission, taking deposits or holding ID's that the factory is not aware of. The factory paid the student worker's wages to the school and the school withholds one month of the worker's wage. The factory should ensure payments are paid directly to workers to avoid any cases of withholding payment.

BUSINESS CASE AND/OR OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

 When a factory decides to hire an intern there are special requirements and additional assistance that an intern requires in order for them to be successful in the factory.  Considering that there are additional provisions that need to be made by the factory this law requirement states that a factory cannot try to recuperate any costs incurred directly from the intern.

Failure to adhere to the regulatory requirements for young workers can result in high penalties. Penalties and criminal charges can be particularly severe for factories and management in cases where young workers are injured or killed in the workplace as a result of regulations not being followed.

COMMON JOB FUNCTION: Human Resource Manager

COMMON JOB, SUB-FUNCTION: Production Manager

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

 Nil

RELATED MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

Young Workers - Vocational School Requirements

ASSOCIATED INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS

ILO CLUSTER: Child Labour

ILO COMPLIANCE POINT: Child Labour

SDG RELEVANCE 4, 8, 12

Mosaic ID: Mosaic21925615