Other Briefings
The United States: A New China Alternative?
By Vivian Ni Nov. 3 – China is gradually shifting away from its position as the world’s default production base for manufacturers. In this country, factor costs are surging and government incentives for foreign investors are diminishing, forcing more and more companies to seek new and attractive destinations where they can relocate their factories. While […]
Beijing Looks to Hike Average Wages
Jul. 26 – Beijing’s municipal government is set to release a new plan aimed at increasing average wages for the capital city’s citizens. Zhang Gong, director of the Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform, said that the average wages of the city’s urban population increased 4.4 percent (after deducting price factors) in the first […]
Hong Kong Statutory Minimum Wage to Come into Force
The Minimum Wage Ordinance was passed by Hong Kong’s Legislative Counsel and will come into force on May 1, 2011. The initial statutory minimum wage rate is HK$28 per hour.
Zhejiang New Minimum Wage Standards to be Set in line with GDP Per Capita
Mar. 4 – The Zhejiang Provincial Government has announced that minimum wages in the province are to increase in line with the GDP per capita in each city during the 12th Five-Year Plan. Local authorities should take into account the degree of financial development, cost of living, and the average salary rise in each area […]
Migrant Workers in China Demand More from Employers
Feb. 11 – Increasing militancy over labor conditions and terms by migrant workers in China is having a serious impact on South China-based businesses, as many migrant workers are refusing to return from the Chinese New Year vacation unless their demands are met. With workers becoming increasingly aware of their rights under the Labor Law, […]
Meal Breaks and Days Off as Part of China Wages?
Feb. 10 – The draft guideline for Hong Kong’s first minimum wage law has left ambiguity over whether workers’ meal breaks and days off should qualify as paid working time, a situation that could be exploited by Chinese city and provincial governments as they seek to improve workers’ conditions and quell potential social unrest by putting […]
Can China’s Consumers Spend Another US$790 Billion Annually?
Op-Ed Commentary: Chris Devonshire-Ellis Jan. 27 – US$1.58 trillion. That’s actually the magic figure. The sum represents the total number of exports that China sent overseas last year. Amidst calls for China to rebalance its economy and shift its reliance on exports towards a more balanced, consumer driven economy, the Chinese government has been taking […]
Guangdong to Lift Minimum Wage Standards Once Again
Jan. 21 – Not long after the last minimum wage lift in May 2010, China’s Guangdong Province has once again decided to raise the minimum wage standards from March 1, 2011. The Guangdong Provincial Government released the “Circular on Adjusting the Minimum Wage Standards of Enterprise Employees in Guangdong Province (yuefuhan [2011] No. 15)” on […]
