Open-ended  Employment  Contract  and  Strategies

有关无固定期限劳动合同的规定是2008年1月1日正式生效的新《劳动合同法》的一个亮点，但这也是用人单位对新法经常抱怨的条文之一。无固定期限劳动合同，是指用人单位与劳动者约定无确定终止时间的劳动合同，即只要用人单位存在，除法律规定的几种特殊情形外，用人单位不能单方解除劳动关系。无固定期限劳动合同不妨碍劳动者单方解除劳动合同。

Provisions concerning open-ended Employment Contract are the highlight of Employment Contract Law, which went into effective on January 1st, 2008, and are also complained by employers from time to time. An “open-ended employment contract” is an employment contract for which the Employer and the Employee have agreed not to stipulate a definite termination date. That means as long as the Employer continues in existence, it can’t terminate the contract unilaterally, except for some special conditions set out by law. However, an open-ended Employment Contract doesn’t prevent the Employee from cancelling the contract unilaterally.

在此种制度下，如果劳动者符合在用人单位连续工作满十年，或者已签订过两个固定期限的劳动合同，或者符合其他条件，比如因为用人单位的疏忽而在雇用劳动者后满一年却未与之签订书面合同等，只要劳动者愿意，都将直接导致无固定期限劳动合同制度的适用。

Under this system, the Employer is obliged to make an open-ended contract with the Employee under any of the following circumstances: the Employee has served the Employer for 10 years or more; or the Employee has completed two fixed-term contracts; or the Employee has served the Employer for one year or more, but the Employer fails to make a written contract with the Employee.

对于法律的这项变化，企业首先必须革新用工观念，建立先订合同后用工的习惯，或至少应在员工上岗后一个月内与其订立合同；在原先的劳动合同到期后，企业若有意续聘劳动者，也必须在一个月内重新与之订立劳动合同。如果劳动者拒不签订劳动合同，企业有必要保留相关的证据，比如向劳动者送达的签订合同通知书等，否则绝不可以继续留用这样的劳动者。

To comply with such provisions, companies must change their employment practice. An employment contract must be signed before employment, or at least, the contract is signed within one month after commencement of the employment. If the existing contract expires and the Employer wants to continue the employment, it must sign a new contract with the Employee within one month after the expiry date. If the Employee refuses to sign a written contract, as the case may be, Employer must keep relevant evidence, for example, the Employer server the notice to the employee regarding the singing of the written contract. Otherwise, companies can’t use such employees.

当劳动者符合法定条件可以签订无固定期限劳动合同时，用人单位可以书面形式向劳动者征询需要订立哪种类型的合同，如劳动者同意订立固定期限劳动合同或主动提出订立固定期限劳动合同的，用人单位一定要保留劳动者同意的书面证据，避免事后被劳动者利用而导致用工成本增加的风险。

In the case that the employee satisfies the statutory conditions concerning open-ended contracts, the Employer may inquire in writing the Employee the type of employment contract he/she wishes to make. If the Employee agrees or proposes to conclude a fixed-term employment contract, the employer must keep such evidence to avoid future risks.

无固定期限的劳动合同并不是不能解除，劳动合同法也给与了用人单位一些救济措施。但这些救济措施均需建基于用人单位拥有完善的企业内部规章制度和完善的劳动管理体系。在新法的环境下，企业若不按规定解除劳动合同，不仅要承担物质损失而且还有可能在员工中造成很不好的影响，损害企业的文化，而规章制度可以明确岗位职责、绩效考核标准、招聘时的录用条件等，这是企业日常运作的规范，也是企业合法有效地与一些无法胜任工作的员工解除劳动合同特别是无固定期限劳动合同的最重要依据。

It is not true that an open-ended contract cannot be cancelled. Employment Contract Law does give the Employer some remedies. However, such remedies require the employer to set up company internal regulations and HR management system. Under the new environment of employment practice, if a company terminates contracts without good reasons, it may suffer monetary loss. Employees may also have bad feelings about the company. Company regulations can define powers and obligations of each position, assessment standards, and recruitment conditions. There are key documents on which the Employer may rely to fire some unqualified employees, especially those who have open-ended contracts.

当然，规章制度的制订本身需要极高的技巧，非但规章制度本身的内容必须合法，其制订的程序也必须合法，而与此同时，规章制度又要起到其应有的作用。否则，如果规章制度违法，则员工既可以此为理由与企业解除劳动合同，又可以拿到经济补偿金。因此劳动法专家参与无固定期限劳动合同以及企业规章制度的订立和实施非常关键。

Making internal rules and regulations itself is a tough task. Not only the content should be legal, but also the procedure. What’s more, these rules and regulations should play a role and make a difference in company’s HR management. If company regulations do not comply with the law, the employee may terminate the employment on that ground. Of course he/she is entitled to economic compensation in such circumstances. Therefore, it is very important to have labor law experts’ involvement in the making and implementation of open-ended contracts and company regulations.

(此栏由江苏无锡云崖律师事务所提供)