Promoting Equality in Employment and Eliminating Sex Discrimination Begins with Job Searching

        With the progress of the times, the concept of equal rights between men and women has become more and more popular, and the government provides more guarantees for women's job-hunting and employment. Therefore, on February 18, 2019, nine departments, such as the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Affairs, jointly issued the Notice on Further Regulating Recruitment Behavior to Promote Women's Employment (hereinafter referred to as the Notice), calling for the prohibition of gender discrimination in employment in recruitment links, hoping to ensure women's equal employment rights. The following will elaborate on the relevant provisions to provide reference for workers and human resources units.

        I. Prohibiting Sex Discrimination in Employment
         In the process of drafting recruitment plans, publishing recruitment information and recruiting personnel, employers and human resources service institutions of all types shall not limit gender (except for the prohibited scope of work for female employees stipulated by the State) or give priority to gender; they shall not restrict women's employment or refuse to employ women on the grounds of gender; they shall not inquire about women's marital and reproductive status; and they shall not conduct pregnancy tests. As an entry check-up project, birth restriction shall not be taken as a condition for employment, and the employment standards for women shall not be raised differently. State-owned enterprises and institutions, public employment personnel service institutions and human resources service institutions affiliated to various departments should take the lead in abiding by the law and resolutely prohibit sex discrimination in employment.

        2. Strengthen the Supervision of Human Resources Market
         Supervise the establishment and improvement of information release review and complaint handling mechanism by human resources service agencies, effectively fulfill the obligation of recruitment information release audit, timely rectify the behavior of publishing recruitment information with sexist content, and ensure the authenticity, legality and effectiveness of the information released. If an employing unit or a human resources service institution publishes recruitment information containing gender discrimination, it shall be ordered to make corrections according to law; if it refuses to make corrections, it shall be fined not less than 10,000 yuan and not more than 50,000 yuan. If the circumstances are serious, the human resources service organizations shall revoke their human resources service licenses. Employing units and human resources service agencies will be included in the human resources market credit records and punished for dishonesty according to law, when they accept administrative penalties for publishing recruitment information containing gender discrimination.

        Establishment of Joint Interview Mechanism
         Open windows, visit reception, 12333, 12338, 12351 hotlines and other pipelines to receive timely complaints about gender discrimination in employment. Those who refuse to accept or correct the interview will be investigated and punished according to law and exposed to the society through the media.

        IV. Improving the Judicial Relief Mechanism
         Accept lawsuits related to gender discrimination in employment according to law, set up disputes over equal employment rights, actively provide legal advice and other legal assistance to women who suffer from gender discrimination in employment, and provide legal aid and judicial assistance to eligible women.