Answer: The Employment Contract Law stipulates that employers is obligated to provide the employee with the agreed-upon work conditions. They include agreed-upon work location because changing work location affect employee’commuting time and costs. Moreover, if such relocation constitutes a failure to provide the employee with the agreed-upon work conditions, the employee may be forced to resign in accordance with Article 38 of the Employment Contract Law, and therefore has the right to claim economic compensation against the employer.
Whether you meet the threshold of the aforementioned forced resignation, first of all, you need to see whether the work location(s) stipulated in your employment contract include the new location that your employer moved to. If so, you do not have right to claim economic compensation, because this is you who violated the provision of the employment contract by refusing to move to the new work location that has been agreed upon.
If your employment contract does not stipulate hat work location as your place of work, the general principle is that the courts will examine the impact of the change of location on you and the remedial measures taken by the employer. If the company moved too far away and the company does not provide mitigatory measures such as offering transportation expenses or commuter bus, you who is forced to resign should receive economic compensation.1Anhui Shiqiang New Materials Co., Ltd., Zhang Lingzhi Labor Dispute Retrial Review and Trial Supervision Civil Ruling Anhui High Court Civil Ruling (2020) Wan Min Shen No.3218. Because in the case the work place was relocated too far, Anhui Shiqiang Materials Co., Ltd. did not provide sufficient evidence to prove that it fulfilled the corresponding assistance obligations, so the court ordered economic compensation. Retrial of labor dispute between Shenzhen Qianhai Tianxin Jiuzhou Commercial Factoring Co., Ltd. and Shi Kunjie Civil Ruling of Guangdong Provincial People’s High Court (2021) Yue Min Shen No.13716.Otherwise, the courts may consider that the employer has tried its best to mitigate the adverse effects of the relocation on you, and that your resignation is merely a unilateral resignation for personal reasons, instead of a forced resignation that entails economic compensation.
Some regional courts have some specific judicial guidance or guidance decisions. For example, the 2015 judicial guidance of the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court stipulates that relocation within the administrative region of Shenzhen does not justify employee¡¯s forced resignation and consequent economic compensation.2 Article 80 of the 2015 Shenzhen Intermediate Court’s Guidelines for Adjudicating Labor Dispute Cases. Zhuhai Intermediate People’s Court also rendered a case ruling that relocation within the same municipal administrative region does not constitute a condition for employee’forced resignation.3Liu Miaohua, Huang Guangming, Zhang Guoqiu, Feng Weichao, Labor Dispute Review and Trial Supervision of Zhuhai Songli Electrical Appliances Co., Ltd. Civil Ruling of Guangdong Provincial People¡¯s High Court (2017) Yue Min Shen No.6391-6394.However, Guangdong Provincial High Court has a case ruling that although relocation within the same city, if the distance is too far, it also constitutes a change in working conditions, and employees who are forced to resign should receive economic compensation.4Guangzhou Jingyong Sports Goods Co., Ltd., He Guiping Labor Dispute Retrial Review and Trial Supervision Civil Ruling Guangdong Provincial People¡¯s High Court Civil Ruling (2018) Yue Minshen No.10250.
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Mr. Dong Wang has been in practice for over 20 years, specializing in business law, including employment law, commercial law, company law, and intellectual property law. Mr. Wang has earned respect and trust from his clients due to his professionalism, fidielty, and kindness.
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- 1Anhui Shiqiang New Materials Co., Ltd., Zhang Lingzhi Labor Dispute Retrial Review and Trial Supervision Civil Ruling Anhui High Court Civil Ruling (2020) Wan Min Shen No.3218. Because in the case the work place was relocated too far, Anhui Shiqiang Materials Co., Ltd. did not provide sufficient evidence to prove that it fulfilled the corresponding assistance obligations, so the court ordered economic compensation. Retrial of labor dispute between Shenzhen Qianhai Tianxin Jiuzhou Commercial Factoring Co., Ltd. and Shi Kunjie Civil Ruling of Guangdong Provincial People’s High Court (2021) Yue Min Shen No.13716.
- 2Article 80 of the 2015 Shenzhen Intermediate Court’s Guidelines for Adjudicating Labor Dispute Cases.
- 3Liu Miaohua, Huang Guangming, Zhang Guoqiu, Feng Weichao, Labor Dispute Review and Trial Supervision of Zhuhai Songli Electrical Appliances Co., Ltd. Civil Ruling of Guangdong Provincial People¡¯s High Court (2017) Yue Min Shen No.6391-6394.
- 4Guangzhou Jingyong Sports Goods Co., Ltd., He Guiping Labor Dispute Retrial Review and Trial Supervision Civil Ruling Guangdong Provincial People¡¯s High Court Civil Ruling (2018) Yue Minshen No.10250.