CBL’s Introduction
China treats pregnancy, maternity leave, and nursing breaks as enforceable safety mandates rather than discretionary benefits. The Women Worker Employment Rights Protection Rules, translated by CBL into American English, obligate employers to re-design jobs, hours, and facilities around these needs, and bar women from listed occupations. Requirements for businesses in China are far stricter than the flexible approaches used in other jurisdictions and understanding the rules is essential, as missteps can expose employers to fines of up to 300,000 yuan, civil liability, and even shutdown orders.
This translation was done by the CBL team—if it is helpful to you, please take a moment to learn about our Chinese Legal Translation Services.
Contents
- Accommodations for Pregnancy, Maternity, and Nursing (§§ 5–9)
- Enforcement (§§ 12–13)
- Remedies (§§ 14–15)
- Prohibited Jobs (Schedule)
China treats pregnancy, maternity leave, and nursing breaks as enforceable safety mandates rather than discretionary benefits. The Women Worker Employment Rights Protection Rules, translated by CBL into American English, obligate employers to re-design jobs, hours, and facilities around these needs, and bar women from listed occupations. Requirements for businesses in China are far stricter than the flexible approaches used in other jurisdictions and understanding the rules is essential, as missteps can expose employers to fines of up to 300,000 yuan, civil liability, and even shutdown orders.
Section 1 The purpose of these Rules is to accommodate and address specific challenges faced by women workers due to physiological characteristics and to protect their health in the workplace.
Section 2 These Rules cover government agencies, businesses, public institutions, non-governmental organizations, sole proprietorships, and any other type of employer within the People’s Republic of China and the women they employ.
Section 3 Employers are required to improve protections for women workers, actively improve work health and safety conditions, and provide appropriate health and safety training for women employees.
Section 4 Employers shall comply with applicable laws governing work prohibited for women employees. Employers are obligated to inform women employees in writing of any positions prohibited for women employees.
The specific categories of employment prohibited for women workers are provided in the Schedule to these Rules. Cabinet-level occupational safety, human resources and social security, and health regulators shall regularly review and adjust the positions prohibited for women workers based on socioeconomic needs.
Section 5 Employers shall not reduce wages, discharge, or terminate employment contracts or appointments for women employees due to pregnancy, childbirth, or nursing periods.
Section 6 Employers shall reduce workloads for women employees unable to perform their regular work due to pregnancy or reassign them to suitable alternative roles based on documentation issued by a licensed health care facility.
Employers shall not extend working hours for or assign women employees in or beyond their seventh month of pregnancy to night shifts, and shall organize extra breaks for such employees during their working hours.
Time spent by pregnant women employees attending prenatal checkups during working hours shall be treated as time worked.
Section 7 Women employees are entitled to a total of 98 days of maternity leave for childbirth, including 15 days of leave that may be taken prior to giving birth. An additional 15 days of maternity leave shall be granted for complications, and maternity leave may be extended by an additional 15 days per child beyond the first in the event of multiple births.
Women employees are entitled to 15 days of maternity leave for miscarriages prior to the fourth month of pregnancy, and 42 days of maternity leave for miscarriages beyond the fourth month of pregnancy.
Section 8 Maternity benefits for women employees enrolled in maternity insurance shall be paid from the maternity benefits fund equivalent to the employee’s average monthly wage for the previous year. Maternity benefits for employees not enrolled in maternity insurance shall be paid by the employer at the employee’s regular wage rate in effect prior to the commencement of maternity leave.
The maternity benefits fund shall cover medical expenses for childbirths or miscarriages incurred by women employees enrolled in maternity insurance pursuant to the items and standards specified in the national maternity insurance program. The employer shall pay medical expenses for childbirth or miscarriage incurred by women employees not enrolled in maternity insurance.
Section 9 Employers shall not require women employees breastfeeding infants under one year of age to work overtime or night shifts.
Employers shall provide women employees who are breastfeeding with one hour of nursing time per workday. Women employees giving birth to multiple children shall receive one additional hour of nursing time for each child beyond the first.
Section 10 Employers that employ a significant number of women workers shall set up designated wellness rooms for women employees, break rooms for pregnant employees, lactation rooms, and any other facilities necessary to effectively meet the hygiene and nursing needs of women employees.
Section 11 Employers are responsible for preventing and stopping sexual harassment of women workers in the workplace.
Section 12 County human resources and social security regulators, occupational safety regulators, and their parent agencies are responsible for overseeing and inspecting employer compliance with these Rules within their jurisdiction.
Labor unions and women’s organizations shall oversee employer compliance with these Rules pursuant to law.
Section 13 County human resources and social security regulators and their parent agencies shall require any employer that violates § 6(b), § 7, or § 9(a) of these Rules to correct the violation within a specified deadline and shall impose fines of 1,000 to 5,000 Yuan for each affected women employee.
County occupational safety regulators and their parent agencies shall require any employer who violates § 1 or § 2 of the Schedule to these Rules to correct the violation within a specified deadline and shall impose fines of 1,000 to 5,000 Yuan for each affected woman employee. County occupational safety regulators and their parent agencies shall require any employer that violates § 3 or § 4 of the Schedule to these Rules to correct the violations within a specified deadline and shall impose fines ranging between 50,000 and 300,000 Yuan. If the violations are deemed severe, county occupational safety regulators and their parent agencies shall require any employer to cease or request that the appropriate government order the employer to shut down as authorized by the State Council.
Section 14 Women workers may file complaints, report violations, or file suit against employers that violate these rules and infringe upon women employees‘ rights pursuant to law. Furthermore, they may file for mediation or arbitration with the appropriate labor dispute arbitration agency, and file litigation in the jurisdictional court pursuant to law should they disagree with the arbitration award.
Section 15 Employers that violate these Rules and infringe upon women employees’ rights shall pay compensatory damages to the affected employees pursuant to law. Employers, directors, and other directly responsible employees may be subject to criminal liability under applicable laws if their acts constitute a crime.
Section 16 These Rules shall take effect upon issuance. The Women Worker Protection Regulations issued by the State Council on 21 July 1988, are repealed on the same date.
Schedule: Employment Prohibited for Women Workers
- Employment Prohibited for Women Workers
(a) Underground mining work;
(b) Work classified as job strength level 4 in the physical intensity standards;
(c) Work that requires workers to carry loads exceeding 20 kilograms, 6 or more times per hour, or occasional loads exceeding 25 kilograms.
- Employment Prohibited for Women Workers During Menstruation
(a) Work classified in the cold water work standards as level 2, 3, or 4 cold water work;
(b) Work classified as level 2, 3, or 4 cold work in the cold stress work standards;
(c) Work classified as job strength level 3 or 4 in the physical intensity standards;
(d) Work classified as level 3 or 4 in the elevated work standards.
- Employment Prohibited for Women Workers During Pregnancy
(a) Work involving exposure to high concentrations of lead or its compounds, mercury or its compounds, benzene, cadmium, beryllium, arsenic, cyanide, nitrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon disulfide, chlorine, hexanolactam, chloroprene, vinyl chloride, epoxyethane, aniline, formaldehyde, and airborne toxic substances within the workplace that exceed national occupational health standards
(b) Work involving the production of anti-cancer medications and diethylstilbestrol, or exposure to anesthetic gas;
(c) Work involving unsealed radioactive substances and emergency response to nuclear and radioactive accidents;
(d) Work classified in the elevated work standards;
(e) Work classified in the cold water work standards;
(f) Work classified in the cold stress standards;
(g) High-temperature work classified as level 3 or 4 in the heat stress standards;
(h) Work classified as level 3 or 4 in the noise exposure standards;
(i) Work classified as job strength levels 3 or 4 in the physical intensity standards;
(j) Work in confined spaces, hyperbaric chambers, or diving, work involving exposure to strong vibrations, or work that requires workers to frequently bend, climb, or crouch.
- Employment Prohibited for Women Workers During Nursing Periods
(a) Items a, c, and i in the list of employment prohibited for women workers during pregnancy.
(b) Work involving exposure to high concentrations of manganese, fluorine, bromine, methanol, organic phosphorus compounds, organic chlorine compounds, and other airborne toxic substances within the workplace that exceed national occupational health standards
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This article was translated to American English from the following government publication:
“女职工劳动保护特别规定”
https://flk.npc.gov.cn/detail2.html?ZmY4MDgwODE2ZjNjYmIzYzAxNmY0MTBmMWVkNTE0NTE