Several Issues relating to High Temperature Allowance
High Temperature Allowance (hereafter referred to as HTA) is the allowance that is to be paid to employees who engage in outdoor work or high temperature indoor work during summer as per mandatory law regulations. The following points are reminders relating to HTA regulations.
1. Payment conditions: As per the law, during the provided period in summer, employees who engage in work outdoors or high temperature (equal to or higher than 33℃) indoor work during summer shall be entitled to HTA. This temperature standard is the same in all provinces except for Chongqing city.
2. Period of payment: Guangdong province provides a 5 month period from June to October, so does Chongqing and Fujian province. However, Beijing and other provinces have a 3 month period from June to August.
3. Amount of HTA: Guangdong province provides HTA at RMB 150 per month and RMB 6.9 per day in case of a calculation based on the number of working days. Other provinces have different standards of HTA. For example the highest HTA are from Jiangsu and Zhejiang which provided RMB 200 per month and Hunan provides RMB 160 per month.
4. Scope of receivers: All employees who have an employment relationship, including foreigners who have work permits in China, shall be entitled to HTA.
5. Cool drink: An employer shall not be exempt from its obligation of HTA because it provides cool drinks to its staff.
6. Burden of proof: In case of a claim for HTA, the employer is responsible for the burden of proof regarding the temperature of the working location.
Mr. Dong Wang has been in practice for over 20 years, specializing in business law, including employment law, commercial law, company law, and intellectual property law. Mr. Wang has earned respect and trust from his clients due to his professionalism, fidielty, and kindness.
Email: wangdong@royalaw.com