Recruiting in China

EXPATRIATES who have a labor dispute with their employer will need to apply for government mediation at the Shanghai Labor Arbitration Committee from next month.

The city's new labor arbitration regulation takes effect on May 1, the Shanghai Labor and Social Security Bureau said yesterday.

The new regulation states that employees usually filed a labor arbitration application at district-level mediation committees where the company is located.

Sui Wei, vice director of the bureau's arbitration division, said that the clear division would enable government mediation to work more efficiently.

Cases involving foreigners, employees from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, as well as foreign invested companies with registered capital of US$10 million or above, will only be accepted at the city-level committee.

But the Pudong New Area Arbitration Committee will also be allowed to handle cases involving big foreign-invested companies registered in the district.

Previously, no division was made about where cases would be handled.

Overseas applicants should file in written form within 60 days of a dispute. A work contract and work permit are required, officials said.

The Shanghai Labor Arbitration Committee is at 45 Anyuan Road.