Shanghai Companies Required To Pay Employee Salaries Despite Lockdown

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JAKARTA - Authorities in Shanghai still require companies to pay their employees' salaries even though they cannot come to work due to the lockdown in China's richest city since mid-March.

In documents issued by the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Human Resources and Social Security circulating in Chinese media, Sunday, May 1, it is stated that company also prohibits companies from terminating their employment relationship with their employees who are undergoing quarantine, undergoing medical treatment, or unable to work due to a very strict health protocol policy.

"Companies can arrange for employees to work from home", the document states.

Local authorities only allow delays in payment of salaries for not more than a month if the company is experiencing financial difficulties.

Strict process policies, including implementing a lockdown in several districts in Shanghai, are starting to show results. On Sunday, there were 788 new positive cases and 7,084 asymptomatic cases.

This week, 38 new deaths from COVID-19 were reported, bringing the total number of deaths in Shanghai to 422 since January 2022.

The peak of the addition of new positive cases in Shanghai occurred on April 13 with 27,605. About nine million people in Shanghai are under surveillance, while another 15 million have been allowed to leave their homes.