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本帖最后由 StephenW 于 2012-8-2 22:44 编辑
Intern with hep B fights back
Global Times | 2012-8-2 20:45:04
By Global Times |
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A 2012 university graduate, who wished to use the name Wang Hui, was recruited for an internship by a State-owned enterprise (SOE) last fall. He was preparing to begin work last month, but his employment with the SOE was abruptly canceled.
On July 11, Wang and seven other recruits were contacted by a representative from the human resources department of AVIC Chengdu Engine Co (Group) Ltd (AVIC), their would-be employer, and notified that they were infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV).
They were told that for other employees' safety the company would be ending employment relations with them.
Wang, who attended the engineering-based Nanchang Hangkong University, was recruited by AVIC in October of last year.
After signing a contract with the company on July 2, Wang and 349 other recent graduates were made to take physical checkup on July 3.
"The contract was blank except for the signatures, and then the contracts were handed over to the upper departments that day.
"We don't have a copy of our own contracts," said Wang.
After the deed was exposed to the media, AVIC investigated the case. Chen Jin, president of AVIC, met with Wang Tuesday, in an effort to convince him to accept employment with the SOE once again.
Wang signed a new five-year contract with AVIC that day, but he said he still felt wary of the agreement.
"The head of AVIC's human resources department had told me that the company would not treat me well if I exposed them to the media and then returned to work," Wang told the Global Times.
He said that Chen promised he would not be penalized. "But I'd rather have that in writing," Wang added.
Wang said a doctor told him he was indeed infected with HBV, but that his liver worked as well as a healthy one. The doctor also assured Wang that HBV would not make him unfit for work and that he would not infect others.
As of Thursday, AVIC had not responded to the Global Times' requests for comment.
The Chinese government has officially stated that employing units should not make employees take physical exams related to HBV.
And the People's Republic of China Employment Promotion Act, which came into effect on January 1, also forbids employing units from firing employees who carry a communicable disease.
But there are enterprises that break the rules. Unfortunately, Wang is not the exception.
Guangzhou Daily reported in 2010 that Wang Wen, once a public affairs supervisor with Baiyun International Conference Center Co, was demoted to a bathroom custodian because he was found to be infected with HBV after a physical exam provided by the company.
Wang Wen reported the incident to relevant departments, but with no luck. Guangzhou Human Resource and Social Security Bureau told him that there was not enough evidence to prove that he was the victim of discrimination.
"Victims of job discrimination face many obstacles when fighting for their rights," said Lu Jun, executive director of Beijing Yirenping Center, a public service institution.
"It is hard to provide evidence that the victims suffered discrimination from their employer when there is no written record of abuse against them. Most were just told, orally, to go home, " said Lu.
Lu told the Global Times that in foreign countries like the US, the burden of proof in such cases is on the companies.
Yet in China it rests on the employees, which is especially difficult because many SOEs do not provide workers with copies of contracts or the records from their own medical exams.
"SOEs that are caught breaking such laws have to pay fines of up to 20,000 yuan, but a worker who has suffered from discrimination may be much more burdened by the expense of legal fees when pursuing justice," said Cheng Zhuo, a volunteer from ELXB, a public service institution in Chengdu that provided assistance to Wang Hui. "This is the main reason for the persistence of this problem."
Zhang Baichuan, a retired physician, told the Global Times that HBV can only be transmitted through blood contact, sexual intercourse and from mother to fetus.
Zhang believes that people confuse HBV with other forms of hepatitis, which are more easily transmitted.
"HBV-infected individuals should not be discriminated against," Lu Jun said.
Global Times
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发表于 2012-8-1 16:19
