Mediators can end labor wrangles, foreign firms told

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security listed labor dispute mediation as a new profession in 2007. Talented professionals trained in such mediation will receive certification of their skills.

Beijing Foreign Enterprise Service Corp, a leading human resources service provider for more than 10,000 companies in China, most of which are foreign-funded, set up an industrial relations mediation committee in 2010.

The first group of 35 trained mediators, comprising human resource managers, legal advisers and members of trade unions, started work on the committee in August 2010, said Liu Zhenxing, the committee's director.

The company has earmarked 200,000 yuan ($32,160) to support the committee's work and ensure its objectivity in solving disputes between employers and workers, he said.

Workers and employers will sign an agreement if mediation is successful. The committee will submit the agreement to a local arbitration tribunal for validation, Liu said, adding that the agreement will only take effect with the tribunal's approval.

The company said that by the end of 2013, the committee had solved about 2,000 industrial relations disputes, with employers paying around 70 million yuan as compensation for "peaceful breakups" with former employees.

"Most cases we handled concerned layoffs due to various reasons. We try to help companies and employees solve their problems before tension escalates by telling them what the law stipulates and by attempting to find a way for both sides to compromise," Liu said.

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