The interception of maternity allowances for female workers raises concerns about how to improve regulations and plug loopholes?
2024-09-06
Recently, two disputes over maternity allowances occurred in Leshan, Sichuan. Two female employees of a company not only failed to fully recover the difference in their entitled allowances, but also terminated their employment relationship with the company as a result. Experts believe that relevant departments should be vigilant about the phenomenon of maternity allowances being "withheld" by enterprises. The true implementation of maternity allowance benefits requires further clarification of relevant regulations and continuous efforts from relevant departments. Although I am unwilling, the litigation cycle is too long and I cannot afford it Just last month, after 105 days of recourse, Jiang Hui considered again and again, just like her former colleague Hu Wanli, she gave up the fight for the full maternity allowance, chose to mediate before the court, and took the initiative to terminate the labor relationship with the company while accepting the compensation plan provided by the company. According to Chinese law, maternity allowance is a wage compensation received by female employees during their maternity leave or family planning surgery leave in accordance with national regulations. However, in reality, some companies withhold the difference in maternity allowance for female employees under the pretext of fully paying maternity leave wages, in order to balance the maternity benefits for other higher paying positions within the company. In the past six months alone, there have been two similar disputes over maternity allowances for female employees in Leshan, Sichuan, which have attracted social attention. In 2020, Jiang Hui joined a chain supermarket in Leshan City as a cashier supervisor, earning a monthly salary of 3100 yuan for the maternity allowance that was "withheld". In January 2024, she successfully gave birth to her second child. In March, at the request of the enterprise, submit the application materials for maternity allowance to the medical security service center in the jurisdiction. According to the "Maternity Allowance Verification Form" provided by the District Medical Security Service Center to Jiang Hui, her allowance can be enjoyed for 173 days, and the total amount of maternity allowance is 35214.41 yuan. However, in reality, Jiang Hui only received maternity leave pay of 11676.66 yuan. I thought the difference in allowance would be reimbursed to me, but later I was told that I had already received maternity leave pay and would not make up for it again Jiang Hui had doubts about this, and at this time, she learned that her colleague Hu Wanli, who had given birth two months earlier, was also demanding the withheld maternity allowance from the company. Employee maternity insurance is provided by the employer, who pays for the maternity leave according to the employee's original salary standard, ensuring the welfare benefits of female employees who give birth. The issuance of maternity allowance shall cover the portion exceeding the salary, while also taking into account the welfare protection of employees in other positions whose actual salary income cannot be covered by the allowance In multiple communications, the relevant person in charge of the human resources department of the company where Jiang Hui and Hu Wanli work said. We guarantee that the salary and benefits of each employee remain unchanged in accordance with relevant laws and regulations, which may be difficult for employees to understand, "said Ms. He from the HR department of the company regarding the dispute over maternity allowance. My maternity leave salary is far lower than the approved maternity allowance, but the company is only willing to pay the actual salary, and even through legal procedures, only part of my rights have been recovered Jiang Hui said that she ultimately only managed to secure a partial allowance difference of 13000 yuan, which the company will reissue before September 20th. Hu Wanli also experienced the same situation as her. In May of this year, Hu Wanli applied for labor arbitration and finally reached an agreement through mediation. The company supplemented the maternity leave salary with partial allowances, and both parties terminated the labor contract. In front of enterprises, workers are still relatively disadvantaged. Arbitration and litigation are both a dead end, and the job is definitely not guaranteed. We also need to consider time and economic costs Jiang Huitan said that although she felt helpless, life still had to go on, and they didn't want to get caught up in a prolonged "lawsuit". In 2012, the "Special Regulations on the Labor Protection of Female Employees" were officially released, which explicitly stated in Article 8 that "maternity allowances for female employees during maternity leave shall be paid by the maternity insurance fund according to the standard of the average monthly salary of employees in the previous year for those who have already participated in maternity insurance; for those who have not participated in maternity insurance, they shall be paid by the employer according to the standard of the salary of female employees before maternity leave. In Chapter 6 of China's Social Insurance Law, maternity insurance specifically lists female employees who are entitled to maternity leave and other benefits, and can enjoy maternity allowances in accordance with national regulations. Although there are clear provisions in laws and regulations, different companies have different understandings on whether to pay higher wages or to ensure a minimum wage Wang Enhui, a lawyer from Sichuan Weixu Law Firm and deputy director of the Labor and Social Security Professional Committee of Sichuan Lawyers Association, stated that in general, the salary and benefits of different positions in enterprises are different. Maternity allowance is issued according to the average monthly salary standard of employees in the previous year, which inevitably leads to situations where some personnel have higher salaries than their original positions, while others cannot cover their original position salaries. The above laws and regulations also stipulate that employers shall not reduce the salary of female employees due to pregnancy. This means that if the maternity allowance is lower than the employee's salary standard, the enterprise must make up for the difference. "This actually indirectly clarifies the principle of 'higher payment', but some enterprises will use this as an excuse to macroscopically allocate employees' maternity allowances in order to reduce labor costs," said Wang Enhui. Not lower than the pre childbirth wage standard is a legal bottom line, which does not mean that companies can intercept and redistribute the difference above the wage standard He Ling, Vice Dean of the Law School of Southwest University for Nationalities and Vice President of the Labor and Social Security Law Research Association of Sichuan Law Society, believes that the state has provided economic and material assistance to maternity workers through social insurance legislation, which has to some extent balanced the burden of maternity expenses on employers. Therefore, even if the maternity allowance issued is higher than the maternity leave salary, employers should protect the maternity rights and interests of female employees, comply with legal and regulatory provisions, and implement full payment after collection. Calling for further improvement of local regulations, "attention should be paid to the problems that arise in protecting the reproductive rights and interests of female employees, and a friendly social environment for childbirth should be actively created." He Ling believes that relevant departments should be vigilant about the phenomenon of maternity allowances being "withheld" by enterprises, which may lead to the alienation of the purpose of enterprises participating in maternity insurance, such as the situation of profiting by withholding high social security funds from female employees after giving birth. Therefore, based on national laws and regulations, local governments should formulate corresponding implementation rules according to local conditions, improve the basis for legal enforcement, avoid similar interception phenomena, and thus avoid labor disputes arising from them. Several regions across the country have already established clear guidelines for the distribution of maternity allowances. For example, the "Regulations on Maternity Insurance for Employees in Guangdong Province" stipulate that if the maternity allowance is higher than the original salary standard of the employee, the employer shall pay the remaining maternity allowance to the employee. The Regulations on Maternity Insurance for Employees in Jiangsu Province stipulate that if the maternity allowance exceeds the standard of maternity leave or pre leave salary, the employer shall not withhold it. The policy interpretation on the "maternity allowance" on the Beijing Municipal Government website shows that if the maternity allowance is higher than the standard of one's maternity leave salary, the employer shall not deduct it. Previously, there have been multiple judicial cases in places such as Zigong and Mianyang in Sichuan Province where "high maternity allowances are used to compensate for the difference". The court has clarified that "withholding and withholding maternity insurance benefits for female employees is a violation of their legitimate rights and interests". The maternity allowance is a special economic guarantee provided by the state to female workers who give birth, and there is no dispute about this. To ensure the implementation of the policy, relevant departments need to further exert their efforts Wang Enhui said. (New Society)
Edit：Lubaikang Responsible editor：Chenze
Source：workercn.cn
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