How difficult is it to implement paid leave?

How difficult is it to implement paid leave?

According to the provisions of my country's "Labor Law", the country implements a paid annual leave system and promulgated the "Regulations on Employees' Paid Annual Leave". In the first half of this year, Hunan, Lanzhou in Gansu, Harbin in Heilongjiang and other places also successively issued detailed implementation rules for paid leave for staff in government agencies and institutions. However, a recent survey by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security shows that the current implementation rate of paid leave is only 50%.

The "Regulations on Paid Annual Leave for Employees" has been implemented for more than 7 years since 2008. The implementation of paid leave is mainly concentrated in party and government agencies, public institutions, large state-owned enterprises, and foreign-funded enterprises. Some private enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises have relatively poor implementation.

What is paid leave?

In June, the "Implementation Opinions of Beijing Municipality on the Implementation of the National Tourism and Leisure Outline (2013-2020)" was released, which attracted widespread attention. According to the opinions, in 2020, the city's paid vacation system for employees will be basically implemented, and a modern tourism and leisure system that is compatible with a well-off society will be basically established. The opinions are clear, encouraging agencies, groups, enterprises and institutions to guide employees to flexibly arrange vacation time throughout the year, effectively protect their rights to travel and leisure, strengthen supervision and inspection of the implementation of paid annual leave, and provide legal assistance for employees to safeguard their rights and interests in rest.

Previously, some local governments have also announced opinions or detailed rules on the implementation of paid leave for government agencies and institutions. For example, in early April, Harbin issued the "Implementation Opinions on Paid Annual Leave for Staff of Government Institutions and Institutions"; 5 On May 4, the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau of Lanzhou City, Gansu Province issued the "Implementation Measures for the Comprehensive Implementation of the Paid Annual Leave System for Staff of Government Institutions and Institutions"; on May 25, the General Office of the Hunan Provincial Government issued the "Measures for the Comprehensive Implementation of the Paid Annual Leave System for Staff of Government Institutions and Institutions"; Implementation Rules for Paid Annual Leave for Staff”.

Liu Junhai, a member of the Legal Advisory Committee of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions and a professor at the Law School of Renmin University of China, said, “Implementing the paid leave system is helpful in stimulating consumption, promoting the development of the service industry, and promoting economic transformation under the new normal. "

It is too early to say that the paid leave system will immediately benefit the tourism industry, but it is obvious that it will alleviate some of the social pressure and safety risks caused by the excessive concentration of people during the Golden Week, such as scenic spots and hotels. , transportation and other aspects will be greatly improved. Thinking further, the composition of tourists will gradually transition from the original group tours and official tours to independent tours and self-guided tours. What follows is the adjustment of the corresponding product composition and corporate service models.

“It will also bring many changes to online and offline travel agencies, service providers, and tourism industry entrepreneurial groups. After paid leave is truly implemented, the off-peak and peak seasons of tourism will not be so obvious, and business operations will be more balanced. Therefore, for the entire industry, in the long run, it will not only be beneficial to the online industry, but also play a positive role in promoting the entire industry," said Wei Changren, President of Jinlv.com.

Why is it difficult to take paid vacations?

Although there is a paid vacation system, it is not easy to implement. The profit-seeking nature of enterprises and the weak status of employees make it difficult to take paid vacations. main reasons for implementation.

On the one hand, labor costs have been rising in recent years. Employers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, hope to reduce costs by reducing employees' paid leave time, so they are unwilling to take the initiative to implement paid leave. On the other hand, employees often dare not take the initiative to protect their vacation rights due to personal livelihood needs or fear of losing their jobs.

Employees “don’t dare to take leave”

“If the leader takes the lead in not asking for leave, how can we be embarrassed to take it? If the impression of not working diligently is left, it will be troublesome for future transfers and promotions. . ”——Bank Zhang said.

“I work in sales, and most of my salary is commission. The basic salary is very low. The ‘salary’ of paid vacation refers to the basic salary, so it’s better to never take it off.” ——Salesman complained.

“I’m too busy doing consulting, and I can’t finish the things at hand. If I take a vacation, it will affect the entire department. I didn’t even mention the annual leave.” ——The consulting king was helpless.

"I have been working for more than a year and I have never heard of paid leave. Who will pay you if you don't work?" Security guard Li was surprised.

“You have to report to the company to take a vacation, and it may not be approved. Even if the vacation is approved, the boss may arrange work during the vacation.” - Media Sun is very tired.

The unit “does not allow vacations”

“As a private enterprise, it is very difficult to recruit talents and the mobility of personnel is also very high. In the past, some of our employees used vacations as an excuse. Applying for jobs in other units has resulted in the loss of our staff." - The senior management is also very aggrieved.

“As a private enterprise, every employee has a fixed position, and his position is difficult to be replaced by others. If he takes a vacation, the entire work chain will be unbalanced. , will inevitably bring some cost pressure to the company. “——It’s not easy for everyone.

Governments and public institutions take the lead in implementing paid leave, which can certainly form a certain leadership and demonstration effect. However, while government agencies and institutions are accelerating the implementation of paid leave, enterprises, especially private enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises, must have supervision from relevant departments such as labor unions to promote the implementation of the paid leave system.

Insufficient supervision

Insufficient law enforcement supervision and penalties are also important reasons why the paid leave system cannot be implemented. Units that violate regulations receive little or no punishment. Such "zero cost" also makes some employers lack due respect for the law, and workers have no choice but to swallow their anger, further aggravating the "implementation difficulty" of paid leave.

What to do with paid leave

To ensure that the implementation of the paid leave system does not stop at 50%, companies need to realize that sooner or later the supply and demand relationship in the job market will change. It can be an important means to attract talents.

In a situation where the competitive pressure of workers is relatively high, it is normal to feel uneasy and anxious. The fear of taking a break, being unwilling to take a break, and being unable to take a break fully reflect this. Then individuals should pay more attention to their most basic right to rest and ensure the healthy operation of body and mind. Workers should also strengthen their awareness of rights protection. However, the prerequisite for asserting their own rights and interests through the law is the support of public opinion and the legal environment. On the one hand, law enforcers should increase enforcement efforts and maintain the seriousness of the law. On the other hand, public opinion should also encourage workers to do so.

At the same time, relevant departments should also issue relevant rules for the implementation of paid leave nationwide as soon as possible, and further increase the active supervision and accountability of labor inspection departments, increase the illegal costs of offenders, and strictly enforce Investigate the illegal responsibilities of employers who do not implement the paid leave system, so as to continuously improve the implementation rate of paid leave.

Excellent overseas experience is also worth learning from. In Western Europe, such as France and Switzerland, the country will stipulate that most government agencies and enterprises across the country will Institutions etc. must take about a month off. The merit of this regulation is that it is mandated by the state, and you have to take a break even if you don't have a day off. You must put down what you are doing and relax; the thing that cannot be copied is that if we also take paid holidays at the same time, it will be no different from the Golden Week.

This determines that in our country, it is more difficult to force individuals to choose a period of vacation. Whether it is strengthening supervision or safeguarding individual rights, if we want regulatory authorities to be truly motivated and individuals truly confident, we must think more about workers, what they hope for, what their concerns are, and how to solve them.