Firing locals
First, you are likely to be inherited with the problems
because you are the one who did the hiring and you are now looking for answers to solve your problems.
Can a company fire a local?
Yes. The local labor department does not like it but the general principle practiced is
that you can fire a local if he is compensated.
What compensation are we talking about?
In general, if he is employed by you for less than a year, you need to pay him a
month pay. If he is employed by you for 5 years, you need to pay him 5 month pay. Pay
means salary, bonus and other benefits.
How about when the employee is at fault?
If it can be proven and the fault of the employee committed is sufficient for immediate
dismissal under the Chinese labor laws, no compensation is required. Usually, a local
employee is fired because he disobey an order. Disobeying an order is not a "death penalty"
under the labor laws. Hence, things may get a bit tricky here.
What happens when the employee fails to obey an order and a company wants to avoid paying
compensation for his dismissal?
Well. There is no clear answer and a good solution for all the cases. Generally, you
should have a good employment handbook that tightly covers all the possibilities so that
disobedient is a serious breach of the rules in the handbook. You may bring up the breach of rules stated
employment handbook as a reason backing the firing. Whether it works or not is hard to say.
We have seen it works sometimes.