Recently, a screenshot of the WeChat chat related to "Employees' Forced Overtime and Anger towards Leaders during Qingming Festival" has sparked a heated discussion on the internet. According to the screenshot, the cause of the incident was that in the WeChat chat group of "CETC Software Development Class", two employees were designated by the leaders to work overtime during Qingming Festival. One of the employees, Chen, explicitly refused to work overtime and angered the leader, venting his resentment of working overtime in the past period of time. Chen's move resonated with colleagues from multiple departments, expressing support through collective resignation, ultimately leading to 23 people in the software development department collectively requesting resignation, and dozens of hardware and other department employees also resigning. With the fermentation of public opinion, in addition to the support and condemnation attitudes of netizens, the latest rumor refutation news has been reported by the media, claiming that the rumored party Chen has no relationship with China Electronics Technology, and the online chat records are suspected to be forged. However, regardless of whether the incident is fraudulent or not, the situation of "forced overtime" is indeed a potential problem that workers may face in the workplace. Our lawyers will provide a brief analysis of the legal issues involved in this matter.

1、 Can employers force workers to work overtime?

Article 31 of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China stipulates that the employing unit shall strictly implement the labor quota standards and shall not force or in disguised form force workers to work overtime. Employers who arrange overtime shall pay overtime pay to workers in accordance with relevant national regulations.

Article 41 of the Labor Law of the People's Republic of China stipulates that employers may extend their working hours due to production and business needs, after consultation with trade unions and workers, generally not exceeding one hour per day; If it is necessary to extend working hours due to special reasons, the extended working hours shall not exceed three hours per day, but not exceed thirty-six hours per month, while ensuring the physical health of the workers.
Therefore, the law stipulates that employers shall not force workers to work overtime, and workers have the right to refuse to work overtime.

2、 The legal liability of employers for illegally extending workers' working hours.

According to Article 90 of the Labor Law of the People's Republic of China and Article 25 of the Labor and Social Security Supervision Regulations (State Council Order No. 423), if an employer violates labor and social security laws, regulations, or rules to extend the working hours of workers, the labor and social security administrative department shall give a warning, order correction within a time limit, and may calculate a fine based on the standard of 100 yuan to 500 yuan per worker who has been harmed.

3、 Can workers claim economic compensation for resigning under the pretext of forced overtime?

Regarding the issue of whether workers can receive economic compensation for resigning under the pretext of mandatory overtime, there is a viewpoint that if an employer violates mandatory legal provisions and forcibly arranges workers to work overtime, it belongs to the situation of Article 18 (10) of the Implementation Regulations of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China, which states that if an employer violates mandatory legal or administrative regulations, the worker may terminate the labor relationship with the employer, Similarly, it also complies with the provisions of Article 38 (6) of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China, which stipulates that "other situations where laws and administrative regulations stipulate that workers can terminate their labor contracts (relationships)". Therefore, if a worker resigns on the grounds of mandatory overtime work by the employer, they have the right to receive economic compensation.

However, in practice, this viewpoint has not been supported. In the (2020) Anhui Min Zai No. 119 case, the Anhui Provincial Higher People's Court held that if a worker believes that the employer has illegally extended working hours, they can file a complaint or report to the relevant labor administrative department in accordance with the law, and may refuse to work overtime. The law does not grant workers the right to unilaterally terminate their labor contracts and enjoy economic compensation in the event of illegal extension of working hours by the employer, so the employer does not need to pay economic compensation to the workers.

In addition, if the worker actually works overtime and receives overtime pay, it is difficult to consider it as forced overtime. In the (2017) Yue 04 Min Zhong 1518 case, the Intermediate People's Court of Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province held that there was no evidence to show that the employer had forced overtime behavior or would take punitive measures for their non overtime behavior, and that the worker had already received corresponding overtime wages. Therefore, it should be deemed that the worker's overtime behavior was voluntary, and in cases where the worker has the right to choose to refuse overtime according to law, However, agreeing to work overtime and receiving overtime wages is not enough to determine that the employer has violated the mandatory provisions of laws and administrative regulations, and it is difficult to say that it has harmed the rights and interests of workers. Therefore, the worker proposes to terminate the labor contract on this grounds, which violates the principle of good faith.

The author believes that if a worker resigns and claims economic compensation solely on the grounds that the employer is forced to work overtime, the likelihood of receiving court support is relatively low. However, if the employer terminates the labor contract with the worker on this grounds after the worker refuses to work overtime, it is considered illegal to terminate the labor contract, and the worker has the right to claim compensation for illegal termination of the labor contract.

4、 Can workers receive economic compensation for resigning due to failure to pay overtime pay in full and on time?

According to Article 45 of the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on the Application of Law in the Trial of Labor Dispute Cases (1), if an employee works overtime but the employer refuses to pay overtime pay, and the employee proposes to terminate the labor contract on this grounds, the employer shall pay economic compensation. Workers should provide evidence to prove that the employer has engaged in malicious behavior of "refusing to pay".

If the employer actually pays overtime pay, but the employee believes that it has not been paid in full and on time, whether the employee's claim for economic compensation based on the unit's failure to pay overtime pay in full and on time is supported or not, the views held by different courts in practice are also inconsistent. For example, in the "Sichuan Human Resources Management Consulting Co., Ltd. and Yan Labor Dispute Case" of the Top Ten Typical Labor Disputes of Chengdu Intermediate People's Court in 2019, the court held that the labor remuneration in Article 38 (2) of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China does not include overtime fees, Therefore, there is no legal basis for workers to terminate their labor contracts and demand economic compensation from the employer on the grounds that the employer did not pay overtime pay in full and on time, and they should not receive support; However, in the (2017) Su 06 Min Zhong 2431 case, the Intermediate People's Court of Nantong City, Jiangsu Province, held the opposite view and supported the worker's claim. The judgment standards of the Beijing District Court are relatively uniform, stating that "there is a deviation in the understanding of the calculation base and standards for overtime wages between both parties, and it is necessary to go through arbitration or trial by the judicial authority to determine whether it constitutes arrears, and it is not appropriate to consider it as intentional wage deduction by the employer". In such cases, it is difficult for workers to obtain economic compensation.

The current legal system provides clear provisions for the right of workers to rest and take leave, and also focuses on limiting the working hours of workers. However, in the current economic situation, employers are facing fierce market competition, high unemployment rates, and various layoff news constantly selling anxiety, making the workplace inevitably enter an era of "involution". Employers should strike a balance between market competition pressure and protecting workers' right to rest.