Circular of the Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Personnel on the Issuance of the Measures for the Implementation of the Provisions of the State Council on the Working Hours of Employees)

Article 1 These Measures are formulated in accordance with the Provisions of the State Council on the Working Hours of Employees (hereinafter referred to as the Provisions). Article 2 These Measures shall apply to all organs, organizations, enterprises and institutions (including state-owned, collective, private, individual, foreign-funded, Sino-foreign joint ventures and other types of single or mixed economic ownership and mines, factories, construction, transportation, forest logging, farms, commerce, services and other industries as well as scientific research and design, culture and sports, medical and health care, colleges and universities, primary and secondary schools, etc.) within the territory of the Chinese People's Republic of China*** and the State, (child care centers, etc.). Article 3 Under the conditions of ensuring the fulfillment of production and work tasks without increasing staffing levels or financial expenditures, workers shall be subject to a working hour system of eight hours per day and an average of forty-four hours per week. Article 4 All units shall implement the Provisions in a planned and step-by-step manner, and management must be strengthened. Economic efficiency must not be affected by the implementation of the forty-four-hour weekly working hour system, nor must the income of employees be reduced as a result. Article 5 Employees engaged in labor under special conditions and with special circumstances may, in accordance with the provisions of the State Council or the competent departments of the State Council in charge of labor and personnel administration, have their working hours appropriately shortened again. Employees belonging to enterprises and institutions directly under the Central Government shall be approved by the labor and personnel departments under the State Council after being examined and reported by the competent departments. For employees belonging to local enterprises and institutions, they shall be approved by the local labor and personnel departments after being examined and reported by the local competent departments. Article 6 Employees who, due to the nature of their work and the limitations of their duties, are not fit to adopt a regular work schedule may, with the approval of the labor, personnel and other relevant departments of the State Council, implement an irregular work schedule. Article 7 All units shall not arrange for employees to work overtime under normal circumstances. The following cases are excluded:

(1) Where work cannot be interrupted during legal holidays and public vacations, and continuous production, transportation or business must be carried out;

(2) Where it is necessary to take advantage of the production shutdown period of a legal holiday or public vacation to carry out overhauling and maintenance of equipment;

(3) Where it is necessary to carry out emergency repairs due to the temporary breakdown of production equipment, transportation routes, and public **** facilities;

(4) Where it is necessary to carry out emergency repairs due to the temporary breakdown of production equipment, transportation routes, and public **** facilities; and repair;

(4) due to the occurrence of serious natural disasters or other disasters, so that the safety and health of the people and the state's assets are seriously threatened, the need to rescue;

(5) in order to complete the national defense emergency production tasks, or to complete the superiors in the national plan outside the arrangement of the other emergency production tasks, as well as commercial, supply and marketing enterprises in the peak season to complete the purchase, transportation, processing of agricultural and sideline products (vi) To fulfill the urgent tasks of national defense. Article 8 The authority for approving enterprises to organize overtime work for their employees under the above circumstances shall be studied and determined by the people's governments of the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government and by the competent departments of the State Council in charge of the respective industries. Article 9 An average of forty-four hours of work per week shall be practiced by an enterprise. According to specific circumstances, two half-day breaks in each two-week period may be exchanged for one day's rest. Article 10 State organs, institutions and people's organizations shall, from the date of implementation of the Provisions (i.e., March 1, 1994), uniformly implement nationwide the practice of taking Saturday and Sunday of the first week as rest days, and Sunday of the second week as a rest day, and accordingly circulate the rest days without any restriction on months or years. In accordance with the needs of work, duty officers shall be kept on duty on the days of rest. Article XI from March 1, 1994 to implement the weekly working hours of 44 hours of individual industries, enterprises have difficulties, can be appropriately postponed, but not later than May 1, 1994, the implementation of the system. Article XII of the labor and personnel departments at all levels to monitor the implementation of the provisions of the violation of the provisions of the units and individuals forced workers to work overtime, depending on the severity of the case to be punished. Article 13 The people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government may formulate implementation rules in accordance with these Measures. Article 14 These Measures shall be interpreted by the Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Personnel within the scope of their respective duties. Article XV of these measures from March 1, 1994 shall come into force.