Zhejiang Issues Document to Implement Paid Annual Leave: Curb Ineffective Overtime and Forced Overtime Culture

Encourage employers to prioritize arranging compensatory leave, make-up days, or annual leave for employees with minor children during spring, autumn, winter, and summer vacations for primary and secondary school students; curb unhealthy work cultures such as “ineffective overtime” and “forced overtime,” and address the pain points of employees who “cannot rest, dare not rest, or are unwilling to rest”…

Recently, the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security, the Provincial Federation of Trade Unions, and two other departments jointly issued the “Notice on Further Implementing the Paid Annual Leave System” (hereinafter referred to as the “Notice”), to effectively safeguard employees’ right to rest and vacation, and to build harmonious and stable labor relations.

Implementing the paid annual leave system is an important welfare and basic right granted to workers by the state. It is also a practical measure to ensure decent work, promote workers’ physical and mental health, and support their comprehensive development. It is significant for improving work efficiency and promoting economic growth.

At the national level, regulations such as the “Regulations on Paid Annual Leave for Employees” and the “Implementation Measures for Paid Annual Leave for Enterprise Employees” clearly stipulate that “employees who have worked continuously for more than 12 months are entitled to paid annual leave” and that “employers should ensure employees enjoy their annual leave.” At the Fourth Session of the 14th National People’s Congress earlier this month, the government work report proposed supporting the promotion of spring and autumn vacations for primary and secondary schools in eligible regions and implementing staggered paid leave for employees.

“All localities should guide employers to strictly implement relevant laws and regulations, organize the proper implementation of the paid annual leave system, and ensure that all eligible employees can equally enjoy their statutory leave rights,” emphasized the four departments in the “Notice.”

The “Notice” clarifies measures to implement the paid annual leave system, including improving annual leave planning, promoting collective negotiations on rest and leave, strengthening coordination of various holidays, and cultivating advanced corporate culture.

Regarding the improvement of annual leave planning, the “Notice” states that local authorities should guide and supervise employers to establish and improve annual leave management systems, adhering to the principle of “overall planning at the beginning of the year and dynamic adjustments throughout the year.” Employers should develop employee rotation leave plans based on production tasks and job arrangements, and coordinate employee leave from the start of the year. For positions with special responsibilities such as major holiday duty, emergency response, or critical role support, employers are guided to develop special leave plans in advance, using methods like “staggered leave, phased leave, and job sharing” to balance work demands with employees’ leave rights.

In promoting collective negotiations on rest and leave, the “Notice” states that local authorities should encourage employers and employees to negotiate on the implementation of the annual leave system, incorporate it into collective bargaining and collective contracts, and clarify specific implementation details and dispute resolution channels. Trade unions should actively participate in collective negotiations, and human resources and social security departments should strengthen guidance on collective bargaining. For cases where annual leave is not included in collective contracts, authorities should guide and urge both parties to include leave provisions in collective agreements to ensure employees’ right to annual leave.

To enhance coordination of various holidays, the “Notice” encourages employers to innovate holiday usage methods, support employees in combining annual leave with statutory holidays, weekends, and compensatory days off to form longer “composite holidays,” meeting diverse needs such as visiting family, tourism, and family care. Employers are also encouraged to prioritize arranging compensatory leave, make-up days, or annual leave for employees with minor children during primary and secondary school spring, autumn, winter, and summer vacations, supporting family care and travel. Promoting staggered leave and guiding employees to avoid peak travel times during holidays can improve leave quality.

In cultivating advanced corporate culture, the “Notice” requires that localities incorporate rest and leave into the construction of harmonious labor relations within industrial chains. Companies should foster a culture of respecting labor and employees, advocate the concept of “efficient work, happy life,” curb unhealthy practices like “ineffective overtime” and “forced overtime,” and actively create a healthy workplace environment to address employees’ pain points of “being unable to rest, dare not rest, or unwilling to rest.”

To promote the implementation of the paid annual leave system, Zhejiang will strengthen supervision and coordination. The “Notice” states that human resources and social security departments at all levels should include the implementation of the annual leave system in regular supervision, focusing on small and micro enterprises and labor-intensive companies. They will conduct annual special law enforcement actions on rest and leave in cooperation with relevant departments. Additionally, daily labor inspection and enforcement will be strengthened, complaint channels will be streamlined, and cases involving disputes over annual leave will be handled promptly and efficiently.