Jiangsu Province Wage Payment Regulations

(Adopted at the 12th Session of the Standing Committee of the 10th Jiangsu Provincial People's Congress on October 22, 2004)

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 These Regulations are formulated in accordance with the Labor Law of the People's Republic of China and relevant laws and administrative regulations, and in light of the actual situation of this province, in order to protect the rights of workers to obtain labor remuneration, standardize the wage payment behavior of employers, and strengthen the supervision and management of the wage payment behavior of employers.

Article 2 This Regulation shall apply to enterprises, individual industrial and commercial households, and private non-enterprise units (hereinafter collectively referred to as employers) within the administrative region of this province and the workers who have formed labor relations with them.

State organs, public institutions, social organizations and workers who have formed labor contract relations with them shall be subject to these Regulations, except for the payment of wages to civil servants and personnel managed in accordance with the civil service regulations and other matters otherwise stipulated by the state.

Article 3 Local people's governments at or above the county level shall regularly formulate and publish guiding policies for macro-control of wage levels based on the social and economic development and labor supply and demand conditions in their respective regions.

Employers should reasonably determine their own wage levels in accordance with the requirements of the government's macro-control guidance policy on wage distribution and in combination with labor market prices and the economic benefits of their units.

Employers should establish a normal wage increase mechanism and gradually increase workers' wages based on the unit's economic efficiency growth, the wage guidelines and wage guidance prices issued by the local government, and the average wage level of employees in the region and industry.

Article 4 The distribution of wages shall follow the principle of distribution according to work and implement equal pay for equal work; the payment of wages shall follow the principle of honesty and trustworthiness and be paid in full in cash on time.

Article 5 The labor and social security administrative departments of local people's governments at or above the county level (hereinafter referred to as labor and social security administrative departments) are responsible for guiding, supervising and inspecting wage payment activities within their administrative areas.

The personnel, economic and trade, construction, industrial and commercial management, and People's Bank of China departments of local people's governments at or above the county level shall, within the scope of their respective duties, manage and supervise the wage payment activities within their administrative areas in accordance with the law.

Trade unions, women's federations and other organizations protect workers' rights to obtain labor remuneration in accordance with the law.

Chapter II General Provisions

Article 6 Employers (except self-employed businesses) shall formulate rules and regulations on matters such as wage distribution and wage payment in accordance with the law. When formulating rules and regulations, the employer shall listen to the opinions of the employee representative conference (employee conference) or trade union organization of the unit, and publish them in the unit in a timely manner to inform all employees of the unit. Employers shall adopt reasonable opinions put forward by the employee representative conference (employee conference) or trade union organization.

Article 7 The wage distribution system shall include the following contents:

(1) the wage distribution method for each post;

(2) the method of allocating normal wage increases;

(3) bonus distribution method;

(iv) Methods for allocating allowances and subsidies;

(V) Wage distribution methods in special circumstances such as illness and vacation.

Article 8 The wage payment system shall specify the following contents:

(1) Items, standards and forms of wage payment;

(2) The salary payment cycle and date;

(3) Calculation standards for overtime wages;

(iv) standards for payment of holiday wages;

(V) The circumstances and standards for withholding wages in accordance with the law.

Article 9 An employer and employees shall adopt the method of collective consultation when signing a collective contract or a special collective wage contract on the employees' annual wage adjustment level and the distribution method of the adjustment portion.

Article 10 The employer and the employee shall agree in the labor contract on matters such as the wage distribution and payment method corresponding to their positions. The agreement between the two parties shall not violate the unit's wage distribution and payment system, collective contract or special wage collective contract.

Article 11 Where a piece-rate wage system is implemented, the employer shall follow the scientific and reasonable principles in determining and adjusting labor quotas or piece-rate remuneration standards; the labor quotas determined and adjusted shall be able to be completed by more than 90 percent of the workers in the same position of the unit within the statutory working hours.

Article 12 If a worker provides normal labor, the employer shall pay the worker's wages in accordance with the wage standard agreed upon in the labor contract. The wage standard agreed upon in the labor contract shall not be lower than the local minimum wage standard.

If a worker has any of the following special circumstances but provides normal labor, the wages paid to the worker by the employer shall not be lower than the local minimum wage standard, and the wages of part-time workers shall not be lower than the local hourly minimum wage standard:

(1) Those who are in the probation period;

(2) The employer prepays part of the wages or pays the wages in installments;

(3) Violating the rules and regulations formulated by the employing unit in accordance with the law, and having part of the wages for that month deducted by the employing unit;

(4) causing economic losses to the employing unit, and the employing unit is required to deduct compensation from the wages in accordance with the provisions of the labor contract and the rules and regulations formulated in accordance with the law;

(5) The employing unit is unable to pay wages according to the wage standard due to production and operation difficulties, and the wage standard is lowered after consultation between the employing unit and the labor union or employee representatives of the unit.

In the circumstances specified in item (3) of the preceding paragraph, the part of the monthly salary deducted by the employer shall not exceed 20% of the monthly salary payable to the employee; except in the circumstances specified in item (4), where the employer and the employee have otherwise agreed after the economic loss occurs.

The local minimum wage standard is determined by the people's government of a prefecture-level city based on the minimum wage standard promulgated by the provincial people's government; the minimum wage standard is adjusted at least once every two years.

If the local minimum wage standard at the place where the labor contract is performed is inconsistent with the local location of the employer, the principle of benefiting workers should be followed when applying the local minimum wage standard.

Article 13 An employer shall calculate an employee's wages from the date on which the employee actually performs his or her labor obligations.

The wage payment cycle shall not exceed one month. The following provisions shall be observed in determining the wage payment cycle:

(1) Where a monthly, weekly, daily or hourly wage system is implemented, the wage payment cycle may be determined on a monthly, weekly, daily or hourly basis;

(2) Where an annual salary system or salary payment is implemented according to the assessment period, part of the salary shall be paid in advance each month and settled and paid in full at the end of the year or after the assessment period expires;

(3) Where a piece-rate wage system or other similar wage payment method is adopted, the wage payment cycle may be agreed upon based on the completion of the piece-rate work;

(IV) If wages are calculated based on the completion of a certain work task, they shall be settled and paid after the work task is completed. If the settlement period exceeds one month, the employer shall prepay wages every month;

(V) If a construction enterprise implements the payment of wages in installments after consultation with the workers, it shall advance part of the wages every month, settle and pay them in full at least once every six months, and settle and pay the remaining annual wages of the previous year before the beginning of January of the following year.

Article 14 An employer shall pay wages to an employee on the date agreed upon with the employee; if no wage payment date is agreed upon, the wages shall be paid on the date specified by the employer.

If the salary payment date falls on a statutory holiday or rest day, it should be paid in advance on the working day before that day.

Article 15 An employer shall pay wages to employees in the form of cash and may not replace wages with physical objects, securities, etc. The employer may not require employees to spend their wages at designated locations or occasions, nor may it specify the way employees spend their wages.

Article 16 An employer may sign a wage payment agreement with a bank, set up a special wage account in the bank, and deposit the employees' wages in full into the special wage account before the wage payment date of the unit. The bank will then pay the employees' wages on the employer's behalf within the time agreed in the agreement.

Article 17 The employer shall record in writing the items and amounts of wages to be paid to employees, the actual amount paid, the payment date, the payment period, the items and amounts deducted in accordance with the law, the name of the recipient, etc.

The employer shall establish a labor attendance system, record the attendance of employees in writing, and check with the employees every month and have them sign. The employer shall keep the labor attendance records for no less than two years.

Employers shall not forge, alter, conceal or destroy wage payment records and employee attendance records.

Article 18 The employer shall pay wages to the employee in person and provide the employee with his/her wage list. The wages actually received by the employee shall be consistent with the wage list and the wage payment record of the employer.

Workers have the right to inquire about and verify their own wages.

Article 19 Where an employer and an employee terminate their labor relationship in accordance with the law, the employer shall pay the employee's wages in full within two working days from the date the labor relationship is terminated or cancelled, unless otherwise agreed by both parties.

If a worker dies, the employer shall pay his or her wages for one full wage payment period.

Chapter III Special Provisions

Article 20 When an employer arranges employees to work overtime, it shall pay the employees overtime wages in accordance with the following standards:

(1) If working hours are extended on a working day, additional wages shall be paid at a rate not less than 150% of the employee's salary;

(2) If an employee works on a rest day and cannot be given an equal amount of compensatory rest within six months, he shall be paid overtime wages at a rate not less than 200% of his salary;

(3) For employees working on statutory holidays, overtime wages shall be paid at a rate not less than 300% of their regular wages.

The payment period for overtime wages under Item (1) and Item (3) of the preceding paragraph shall not exceed one month from the date of the overtime work; the payment period for overtime wages under Item (2) shall not exceed six months from the date of the overtime work. However, if the term of the labor contract is less than six months, the wages shall be paid in full within the remaining period of the labor contract.

Article 21 Where a piece-rate wage system is implemented, if an employer arranges a laborer to work overtime outside the statutory working hours after completing the piece-rate quota, the employer shall, in accordance with the provisions of Article 20 of these Regulations, pay a wage not less than the statutory working hours of the laborer.