What Is Annual Leave?

Annual leave refers to the annual leave for employees. That is, employees of government agencies, groups, enterprises, institutions, private non-enterprise units, and individual industrial and commercial households with hired workers can enjoy paid annual leave for those who have worked continuously for more than one year. The unit shall ensure that employees enjoy annual leave. On January 1, 2008, the "Regulations on Paid Annual Vacations for Staff and Workers" came into effect. The "Regulations" also pointed out that paid annual leave does not include relevant national holiday regulations. ^[1]

[nián jià]

Decree of the State Council of the People's Republic of China

No. 514

The "Regulations on Annual Leave of Staff and Workers" has been adopted by the 198th Executive Meeting of the State Council on December 7, 2007, and is now

A reporter asked

The head of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council answered reporters' questions on the "Regulations on Annual Leave for Employees"

On December 14, 2007, Premier Wen Jiabao of the State Council signed a State Council Order promulgating the "Regulations on Annual Leave for Employees" (hereinafter referred to as the "Regulations"), which will come into effect on January 1, 2008. The reporter interviewed the person in charge of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council on the issue of paid annual leave of employees.

Background of regulations

Implementation of the paid annual leave for employees (hereinafter referred to as annual leave) system

Six days off after working

In some units, the original leave rule was "10 days off after five years of work." The new regulations specify that employees who have worked cumulatively for one year and less than 10 years will receive 5 days of annual leave; for those who have completed 10 years and less than 20 years, the annual leave will be 10 days; So, how many days of paid vacation should employees enjoy when their employees have worked for six consecutive years?

Experts explained that the latest paid annual leave regulations cover a wide range, and employees of government agencies, groups, enterprises, institutions, private non-enterprise units, and individual industrial and commercial households with employees are covered by this regulation. The specific number of vacation days in this regulation refers to the "lower limit", that is, the level of vacation prescribed by the unit must not be lower than the number of days specified in the new regulations.

Therefore, in the above case, employees who have worked continuously in the unit for 1 to 5 years without experiencing the conditions stipulated in Article 4 of the new regulations can enjoy 5 days of paid salary in accordance with the new regulations on the premise that the vacation regulations of the original unit remain unchanged. Holidays; employees who have worked for 6 years can still enjoy 10 days of annual leave in accordance with the original regulations of the unit; if there are changes in the unit's vacation regulations, the employees will take vacations in accordance with the new regulations of the unit. At the same time, in accordance with the new regulations, national statutory holidays and rest days are not counted as annual vacations; if employees enjoy winter and summer vacations in accordance with the law, the annual vacations are redeemed for winter and summer vacations.

Many companies are busy dealing with new regulations. The units that had previously had higher levels of vacation indicated that they would not reduce the number of vacation days because of this, and would only make up for those who had been missed. Other companies said that due to the increase in the total number of vacations at once, it may be Differentiate the employees or "balance" the number of vacation days stipulated by the old and new units to buffer the impact of the new regulations.

How to count "cross-year"

Can I take annual leave across the year? According to the new regulations, annual leave is generally not arranged across the year, but if the unit really needs to arrange annual leave for employees due to production and work characteristics, it can be arranged across one year.

Experts explain that there are two levels of meaning here: First, annual vacations can be arranged centrally within one year, or they can be arranged in sections, such as one part in the first half of the year and one part in the second half of the year. Please remove all the holidays in one year. Second, the units that need to arrange annual vacations across the year may need approval from relevant departments. Specific regulations will be clarified after the detailed rules are promulgated.

Regarding the annual calculation method, whether it is calculated based on the natural year or the "factual working age" of employees in the unit, it needs to be clarified after the detailed rules are issued. According to industry analysts, most units will adopt the "factual working age" calculation method based on the nature of their industry; or make an agreement in a signed labor contract in advance.

Some companies have also proposed that due to the introduction of new regulations, the number of leavers will be relatively concentrated in a certain period of time. They also hope that if employees need to take a vacation, they will apply for leave in advance according to the nature of their work, so that the management department can make overall arrangements without affecting the whole. jobs.

Compensation and penalties

So, if the unit really needs to work, and the employee can not arrange annual leave with the consent of the employee, what should I do?

In this case, in addition to paying the employee's normal salary and benefits, the unit should also pay compensation in accordance with the standard of 300% of the employee's daily wage. As for the specific daily wage standard, experts suggest that it may be developed in accordance with the current calculation method of the overtime wage base. ^[4]

At 15:00 on December 28, 2007, the Director of the Legal Affairs and Labor Division

On January 1, 2008, the "Regulations on Annual Paid Leave for Employees" (hereinafter referred to as the "Regulations") reviewed and approved by the 198th executive meeting of the State Council will be implemented nationwide. The "Regulations" clearly stipulate: Employees of public institutions, private non-enterprise units, individual industrial and commercial households with hired workers, etc. who have worked continuously for more than one year are entitled to annual leave with pay. The unit shall ensure that employees enjoy annual leave. Employees enjoy the same period of work as during the annual leave The same wage income. "This is another important measure that the Chinese government has made in terms of labor security and labor benefits after the promulgation of the Labor Contract Law. It once again declares to the world that our party and government are committed to building a harmonious labor relationship to The determination to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the majority of workers and improve their labor benefits. As a theoretician, the author was encouraged by the publication of the Regulations, but at the same time there were some worries.

For a long time, our party and government have always taken the pursuit and protection of the legitimate rights and interests of the working people as their practical goals, and have done a lot of fruitful work to this end. As early as the 1980s, China promulgated the "Regulations on Rewards and Punishments for Enterprise Employees", "Provisional Provisions on Dismissal of Employees in Discipline from State-owned Enterprises", "Provisional Provisions on Employees' Unemployment Insurance for State-owned Enterprises", "Notice on Prohibition of Child Labor", " A series of regulations and rules such as the Regulations on Labor Protection for Female Workers. In the 1990s, China also enacted a new "Trade Union Law", promulgated the "Regulations on the Settlement of Labor Disputes in Enterprises", "Provisions on Working Hours of Employees" and the "Labor Law of the People's Republic of China", Explicit protection.

In addition, in the face of increasing labor disputes and many workers' rights and interests incurred due to contractual issues, on June 29, 2007, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress reviewed and passed the Labor Contract Law, requiring employers to The signing of labor contracts with laborers has provided more effective protection of their legitimate rights and interests. This fully demonstrates the firm stand of our party and government in protecting the legitimate rights and interests of workers. Against this background, the promulgation of the "Regulations on Annual Leave for Employees" undoubtedly further proclaims the consistent position of our party and government, and reflects our party and government's care and care for the legitimate rights and interests of the majority of workers.

However, on the other hand, "apprenticeship is not enough to act on its own." If any law with good content cannot be faithfully implemented and respected, it will not only be used for nothing, it will also degrade the credit and authority of the law itself, and reduce the public's trust and expectation of the rule of law. Looking at the legislative process of labor rights protection in China, it is not difficult to find that, in fact, China has no shortage of good laws on labor security. Although the Labor Law enacted in 1994 was slightly unsuited to the actual needs of modern labor security due to various factors such as time span, it did not lack provisions such as banning child labor, severely punishing compulsory labor and protecting the rights and interests of women workers. ; And the new "Criminal Law" promulgated in China in 1997 will even force employees to provide for severe punishment as a crime. However, it is precisely under the circumstances that the above-mentioned stringent legislative provisions are already in place, and we have seen that vicious cases such as the "Shanxi Black Brick Kiln Incident" which have trampled on human civilization and infringed on the legitimate rights and interests of workers have occurred in China. And why did such a vicious case arise? Is the content of China s Labor Law inadequate, or is the Criminal Law's provisions on forced labor crimes insufficient? Obviously not. The author believes that the root cause of this extremely bad case is actually that we have not faithfully implemented and abide by the existing legislation on the protection of workers' legitimate rights and interests. Taking this as a guide, for the majority of workers, whether the Regulations can be faithfully implemented and adhered to, and to what extent will be enforced and adhered to, may be more gorgeous than the content itself. More worthy of attention and attention.

The promulgation of the "Employees' Annual Leave Regulations" is another important event in the history of China's labor protection legislation. It not only allows us to see the care of the party and the government for the majority of workers, but also allows us to see how to safeguard our legitimate rights and interests Hope for own labor benefits. But just as the "Shanxi Black Brick Kiln Incident" can be swayed into people's field of vision under the dual surveillance of the "Labor Law" and "Criminal Law", who dares to pat his chest to ensure that there is the "Regulations on Annual Leave for Employees" Wouldn't it happen that employees were deducted for reasonable leave? Therefore, for the promulgation or entry into force of the "Employed Employees' Annual Leave Regulations", whether they can bring substantial benefits to the majority of workers and to what extent they can benefit them depends on action! It depends not only on the actions of the labor supervision and management department, but also on the actions of the employer!