Archives 2007

New law to protect rights of workers under contract

THE Shanghai Labor and Social Security Bureau yesterday issued guidance for workers and employers when the new Labor Contract Law comes into effect on January 1 next year.

The bureau has issued a pamphlet to explain the new law to business to avoid breaching regulations when signing contracts with employees.

Adopted on June 29 by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s top legislature, the Labor Contract Law aims to improve workers’ rights and establish a stable and harmonious relationship between them and their employers.

The new law splits contracts into three types – fixed-term, open-term and job-based.

An open-term contract should be signed after workers have been employed by the same unit for 10 years.

Wang Yang, director of the labor relation department of the bureau, said: “Previously when laborers worked for 10 years for the same enterprise, the company would discuss whether to sign an open-term contract with the worker, so it depended on the employer. But after the Labor Contract Law takes effect, it will depend on the employees, if they meet the circumstances.”

Wang also said the rights of laborers on probation were often infringed upon. The new law stipulates that the probation period should not exceed one month if the period of the labor contract is less than one year, and not be more than six months if the contract period is more than three years.

It also requires the salary of the probationer should not be less than 80 percent of the lowest salary for the same post.

According to the new law, businesses should set up a collective consultation system under which, when the employers make important decisions on issues such as salary, vacation, training and discipline, they should put their plans to a meeting attended by representatives of workers for discussion.
The law also has specific stipulations on the implementation and termination of contracts, with the aim of establishing a stable relationship with workers.

China’s current labor contract system was set up in the Labor Law enacted in 1995. The Labor Contract Law is the country’s first law governing contracts.

National HRIS Specialist – A US consulting company

A US consulting company
Location: Shanghai

1. Overall Role:
2. Provide regular maintenance of Human Resource Information System (HRIS) & Recruitment Management System (RMS) to support our HR processes effectively.
3. HRIS:
4. HRIS routine Administration:
a) Create/modify/delete USER account and access right
b) Code Table maintenance
c) Regular monitoring of data integrity
d) Document all process and changes
5. HRIS Reporting and data analysis
a) National headcount & Turnover report
b) Other national reports as requested
c) Doing data analysis when doing HRIS projects
6. Regional support in the access and utilization including support of training
7. Global RMS:
8. RMS routine Administration:
a) Create/modify/delete USER account and access right
b) Requisition templates maintenance
c) Prescreening question library maintenance
d) Agencies name list maintenance
e) Document process and changes
9. RMS Reporting and data analysis
a) National RMS Audit reports
b) Other national reports as requested
10. Regional support in the access and utilization including support of training.
11. Requirements:
12. Bachelor degree
13. 2-3 years of relevant experience gained from sizable / multinational companies, experience in payroll or HR routine operations.
14. Prefer experience in HR systems
15. Can work under pressure environment

* Please send us your complete resume (both in Chinese and in English) to:
‘topjob_hr101sh#dacare.com'(Please replace “#” with “@”)
* In the email subject MUST you plus the position name £¨in either En or Ch £©

National HRIS Manager – A US consulting company

A US consulting company
Location: Shanghai

Main tasks
1. Direct planning and implementing the HRIS for the China Firm comprising offices in different locations in China
2. Be the leader to work with HR teams in various locations to ensure the establishment of an effective HRIS
3. Liaise and work closely with HR, ITS & Finance department, both internal colleagues and external venders, to ensure proper planning, effective implementation of HRIS
4. Manage routine operations, including national reports, national meetings and coordination for other national requests.
5. Participate in system design, data conversion, testing and other processes
6. Analyze need and develop and deliver group training to users to ensure efficient utilization of the HRIS
7. Prepare and document HR Processes and operating procedures pertaining to the use of HRIS
8. Provides operational consultation, problem resolution, and support in the design and development of HRIS queries and reports
Requirements:
1. Bachelor degree or above, degree holder in Human Resources Management or related disciplines
2. 8 years of relevant experience gained from sizable / multinational companies, experience in HRIS project coordination and implementation a definite asset
3. Excellent communication skill in Mandarin & English.
4. Excellent organization, interpersonal, and analytical skills , a good team-player but can work independently to drive for targeted results
5. Able to work in a changing environment
6. Prefer experience in SAP HR system

* Please send us your complete resume (both in Chinese and in English) to:
‘topjob_hr100sh#dacare.com'(Please replace “#” with “@”)
* In the email subject MUST you plus the position name £¨in either En or Ch £©

Chinese Boutique Hotel Company Plans Green Facility

URBN Hotels & Resorts says it will open its first boutique property in Shanghai in December 2007 and position it as an eco-friendly business.

Located on Jiaozhuo Road just north of Nanjing Road and close to the former French Concession district, the new 26-room URBN Hotels is positioning itself as a carbon neutral and earth conscious hotel. It has been converted from a former 1970s post office building and will feature contemporary design with Shanghainese influences.

In May 2007, URBN entered into an agreement with Climate Bridge, an international intermediary offering bespoke solutions for companies and industries to reduce and offset greenhouse gas emissions. The total amount of energy the hotel consumes, including staff commutes, food and beverage delivery, and the energy used by each guest, will be tracked to calculate the carbon footprint. URBN will then purchase credits to neutralize its footprint by investing in “green” energy development and emission reduction projects in China.

Hotel guests can also choose to purchase carbon credits from the program to offset their flights. All credits are verified and approved by the United Nations. This voluntary action by URBN Hotels is significant, considering China is the fastest growing emitter of greenhouse gases and is central to the success or failure of the global response to climate change. URBN is also committed to developing and operating a green property. By renovating an existing structure, focusing on using recycled and locally sourced materials such as reclaimed hardwoods and old Shanghai bricks, and introducing eco-friendly solutions like passive solar shades, rain water retention basins, and water based AC systems, URBN hopes to set an example for other Chinese businesses and industries.

There are plans to develop 20 URBN Hotels in tourist and business cities throughout the country in the next 3 years.

Recruitment Manager

Company introduction:
As one of the leading eSourcing businesses in the world, our client is always looking for talented, qualified people to join our team. It has developed huge experience in sourcing goods and services in more than 500 categories ranging from agency staff to zinc castings. You name it, we have more than likely sourced it. They have global reach and local service. They work closely with their clients throughout the eSourcing process, on hand at every key stage to make sure it runs effectively. They offer tools to support the full range of sourcing demands, from the early stages of designing specifications to data collection and evaluation, online negotiation and managing contracts with suppliers.

If you are interested in a challenging and rewarding career please send your details as well as a covering letter indicating your area of interest to topjob_hr099sh@dacare.com

Report To: CEO
Location:Shanghai
Responsibilities:
Our client growth plans indicate a requirement to recruit a minimum of 50 people over the next two years. The recruitment manager will be responsible for planning, conducting and managing the recruitment process of these new employees and for managing the training program of the employees, will be grow into HRD of the company in China in the next 2-3 years.
The Company anticipates that 70% of the recruitment should be conducted directly by the Recruitment Manager using traditional headhunting techniques and 30% to be done through external recruitment companies.
1. Responsible for the recruitment needs of the Shanghai headquarters and all subsequent regional offices that are opened in Asia.
2. This will include recruitment for all positions in the company, including sales and marketing professionals, Sourcing Managers, Sourcing Analysts, and support staff.
3. Create a long term recruitment plan to accommodate the company forecasted growth plans,
4. Manage all interactions with external recruitment companies.
5. Advise on appropriate recruitment companies that company should be using.
6. Advice on additional recruitment methods that can used including external advertising, professional organizations, and trade shows etc.
7. Conduct own external recruitment from current database of candidates and headhunting
8. Create and run a professional selection and interview process to ensure that TradingPartners is presented.
9. Construct and implement a professional interview and selection process.
10. Create and organize all new employee on-boarding/training programs.
11. The position will involve limited travel to regional office.

Requirement:
1. Bachelor’s degree or above,
2. Consultant preferred- 2-3 years experience in headhunting firms.
4. Good track record in industry and have a good relationship with customer
5. Quick learning, and a strong ability to self-motivation in a short period of time, high pressure to achieve their objectives
6. Good communication in English and Chinese
7. Strong sense of responsibility, lofty professional ethics and strong collective sense of honor and teamwork spirit

* Please send us your complete resume (both in Chinese and in English) to:
‘topjob_hr099sh#dacare.com'(Please replace “#” with “@”)
* In the email subject MUST you plus the position name £¨in either En or Ch £©

Jobs tough to find for women

MORE than 31 percent of women have faced gender discrimination while job hunting, a recent survey of 1,600 people by Shanghai Women’s Federation shows.

The survey also found 70 percent of women are unhappy with re-employment projects in the city, saying they didn’t help at all. And nearly 10 percent of women who lost their jobs want to find work as a domestic worker.

Among the interviewees, 41 percent of women are unemployed. They said increasing age and the lack of skills were the greatest hindrance to finding a job.

Yet 66 percent of those surveyed said they are more likely to hire a local woman as a domestic helper rather than a woman from outside the city, indicating a huge market demand.

Meanwhile, more than 96 percent of women interviewed thought they had good skills in housework and 62 percent had some basic knowledge of nursing.

Shanghai Women’s Federation said it will offer more training to women to help them find a job. The federation also encourages women, either those laid off or university graduates, to start their own business. It has recently issued 200,000 yuan (US$27,027) in awards to some women to help start their businesses.

Google Applauds Chinese Talent Pool

In America, much of Google’s success is attributed to its brilliant employees. In China, there’s no reason that the situation would be any different, but as a bonus, the company could gain a competitive edge by hiring locals.

Google’s poor understanding of Chinese culture has been pinpointed as a reason for its failures in that country; an old Baidu commercial even portrayed Google as a Westerner with embarrassingly poor Chinese-language skills. Hiring Chinese citizens might be an ideal way to overcome this image.

Furthermore, the practice could be beneficial to Google in many other areas. “[T]he nation has such a huge talent potential,” Kai-Fu Lee, the president of Google China, told the AP. “I think there will undoubtedly be innovation in China.”

Innovation is exactly what Google needs – the company’s search market share is approximately one-third of Baidu’s, and has shown little improvement over the past six months. Also, Google’s a bit weak in the mobile department, and cell phones and texting are absolutely taking off in China.

Of course, nothing’s guaranteed to work – it’s not like Google hasn’t tried to reverse its fall in China before. Eric Schmidt has given the division a pretty long leash, however, so no heads are likely to roll in the near future.

Microsoft to hire 1,000 engineers in China

BEIJING (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp said on Tuesday it would hire 1,000 engineers in the current fiscal year, joining the current 5,000 staff in China.

“We will add 1,000 engineers,” Zhang Yaqin, the company’s chairman in the mainland, told reporters on the sidelines of a conference. “There will be researchers, but most will be involved with product,” he said, without elaborating.

The comments come after Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said earlier this month that the Chinese market was important to Microsoft but Beijing needed to do more to protect intellectual property rights.

Microsoft has said more than a fifth of its software running globally was pirated.

Confronting Asia’s recruitment challenge

By Isabelle Chan, ZDNet Asia

commentary Market reports show that employers are using financial incentives to retain their staff. That’s almost welcome news.
Who doesn’t want their salary to increase? But I hope employers are not offering better pay only as a counter-offer when an employee resigns.

Understandably, businesses have salary bands, and they need to keep their hiring costs in check. But there are companies which avoid paying salaries that commensurate with a candidate’s experience and the job responsibilities, and for these employers, they should know that it works in their favor to pay a fair and competitive salary at the onset. Why wait until an employee announces his or her intent to leave to offer a raise?

But it often isn’t about the money, as one ZDNet Asia reader pointed out in response to last week’s commentary. It is the total package that counts, by that I mean salary, plus challenging work, a competent and understanding supervisor, great coworkers, and opportunities to keep learning and to move up the ranks.

Recruiters say finding good talent and keeping them is a challenge. I will not argue with that, but I believe more can always be done, and earlier rather than later. In fact, I believe employers can take proactive steps to preempt resignations and to give their staff a reason to stay, way before their staff even start to entertain thoughts and offers of employment elsewhere.

In most cases, bosses should generally have an idea–even if it is vague–of what his or her employee is seeking. And they don’t need to wait until the annual year-end appraisal to find out. Supervisors can conduct midyear or quarterly reviews, or simply chat with their staff over coffee. It doesn’t have to be a formal setting. Supervisors can find out a lot more about a particular staff, and if he or she has personal or work issues, if he or she didn’t see it as a formal review session.

Of course, there are other factors like work culture and environment that come into play, too. Hell, even how good the restroom smells could help sway some people into staying or leaving. A friend once told me how quickly she made up her mind about a potential job, even before stepping into the interview. She decided, almost immediately, that she couldn’t possibly work in a place that had filthy restrooms.

Okay, not everyone will give up a perfectly good job opportunity just because the toilet smells of pee, but that’s a non-financially motivated reason for employers to think about.

With younger and more tech-savvy men and women joining the workforce, one area that HR departments might want to start thinking about is their policy on Internet use, if there is one.

According to a recent survey conducted by Sophos, one in seven respondents “bring their Facebook addiction to work”. Slightly over 37 percent of the respondents only visited the site once or twice a day, 8 percent admitted using it up to 10 times a day, and 14.8 percent, or one in seven, confessed to being logged onto Facebook almost permanently during their work day.

The Sophos report goes on to warn businesses of the potential productivity implications for businesses that allow their employees to access Facebook during office hours.

Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, said: “The results show that more than one-fifth of these Facebook users are actually Facebook abuses. They’re seriously struggling to tear themselves away from the Web site when they should be concentrating on their job–disturbing news for all organizations that are still allowing employees uncontrolled access.”

With such statistics suggesting that more employees are loafing at the workplace, what should employers do? On the one hand, businesses are told to build a tech-savvy workplace and look toward new media for ideas, as that’s where new market opportunities lie. On the other hand, there is now this potential issue of employee loafing.

I believe it goes back to the issue of placing trust in employees to do their job. Focus on the key performance indicators, and if they meet their deadlines, exceed their targets, and continuously offer new ideas, it’s a win-win for both employee and employer. Reward those who exceed expectations, show a can-do, will-do attitude, and are willing to learn.

According to Hudson’s fourth-quarter report of employment trends in Asia, low employee tenure is a problem for employers in China, Hong Kong and Singapore, with one-third of employees leaving within two years.

Google was voted No. 1 on Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list, and it is its unique culture that catapulted the Internet giant into this top position, not so much the perks and benefits alone. Google achieved another milestone this week. Its shares crossed the US$700 mark for the first time, ahead of analyst expectations.

So, tell me, is money the answer to Asia’s recruitment and business challenge?

China Investment Corp launches global recruiting drive – report

BEIJING (XFN-ASIA) – China Investment Corp (CIC), the 200 bln usd fund set up to invest the country’s foreign exchange reserves, has kicked off a global recruitment drive for senior staff, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The report said CIC’s requirements for Beijing-based positions include overseas education and market experience, and specified openings for portfolio managers for North American, European and Japanese equities and fixed-income products including derivatives.

It said CIC may allocate a third of its assets for investments in global financial markets.

andrew.pasek@xinhuafinance.com