How to Seek Legal Recourse for Wrongful Termination by a Company? Shenzhen Labor Dispute Lawyer Successfully Obtains Compensation for Worker
In the community of workers in Shenzhen, what people fear most is not overtime, but companies finding sneaky ways to force you out: docking pay, reassigning positions, marking you as "absent," or pushing you to "resign voluntarily"... After going through these tactics, many workers end up swallowing the loss, not even daring to claim the money they're owed.
In 2015, Huang Mouyuan encountered such a frustrating situation. He had worked at Fanmou Group for seven years, and after his labor contract expired, he left normally, only to find that the company refused to settle his final month's salary, citing "absenteeism." What's even more absurd, the company dug up old grievances, claiming he had "left his post without approval" before his departure, and sought to hold him accountable, forcing him to return to handle a "work handover," only to immediately announce his dismissal on the spot.
Case review
Huang Mouyuan joined Fanmou Group in 2008 in a technical role, and the two parties signed multiple fixed-term labor contracts, with the last one expiring in October 2015. Before the contract expired, the company's HR department verbally informed him that "the contract would not be renewed upon expiration," so Huang Mouyuan completed some handover procedures and then left his position.
After leaving his position, Huang Mouyuan discovered that the company had not settled his wages for that month, citing "attendance records showing absences" as the reason. Huang went to the company to verify this, but was asked to first "complete the resignation procedures." Subsequently, the company unilaterally issued a "Notice of Termination of Labor Contract," stating that he was "dismissed for seriously violating the company's attendance policy." Huang was left without his wages and burdened with the stigma of being "fired," which repeatedly hindered his job search for new employment.
Case handling process
When Huang Mouyuan came to Guangdong Zhiming Law Firm, he was in very low spirits: "I worked for seven years, and in the end they wouldn't even pay me my wages, and they said I committed serious misconduct. I just can't swallow this."
After taking over the case, Attorney Guo Yixuan's team first did three things: first, they obtained Huang Mouyuan's attendance records and payroll statements from the past two years to verify whether the "absenteeism" was factual; second, they preserved the communication records (WeChat, emails) from the company's HR department to reconstruct the fact that "the contract expired and would not be renewed"; third, they checked the company's social security contribution records with the labor inspection authorities to confirm the continuity and duration of the employment relationship.
The investigation found that during the days when Huang Mouyuan was allegedly "absent without leave," his mother happened to be hospitalized. He submitted a leave request following company procedures, but the company neither approved it nor provided a written response, and later recorded those days as "unexcused absences." Moreover, the company issued the "Notice of Termination of Labor Contract" two months after Huang Mouyuan had already left his post upon contract expiration—during which time the two parties no longer had an actual employment relationship. Yet the company chose to "dismiss" someone who had already left, with an obvious purpose: using "termination for serious disciplinary violations" to counter Huang Mouyuan's wage claims, and possibly even to refuse paying economic compensation.
Attorney Guo's team subsequently represented Huang Mouyuan in filing for labor arbitration, requesting: payment of unpaid wages, compensation for unlawful termination of the labor contract (2N), and payment for unused annual leave. During the hearing, the company argued that Huang Mouyuan had "violated rules by being absent from work without leave" and submitted attendance records as evidence. The attorney pointed out in court that the attendance records were unilaterally produced by the company and contradicted the leave records and hospital medical records, and applied to the arbitration tribunal to obtain the original data from the company's attendance system, ultimately proving that the "absences" had been tampered with by the company after the fact.
Legal Analysis
There are two core legal issues in this case:
First, the determination of expiration of labor contract versus illegal termination. Huang Mouyuan's labor contract expired in October 2015, and the company explicitly stated it would not renew it. Under Article 46 of the Labor Contract Law, when a labor contract expires and is terminated, the employer shall pay economic compensation to the worker. However, the company issued a dismissal notice two months after the contract expired, citing "serious violation of discipline," which lacked factual basis and could not be established since the employment relationship had already ended, constituting illegal termination. Under Article 87 of the Labor Contract Law, if an employer illegally terminates or ends a labor contract, it shall pay the worker compensation at twice the standard of economic compensation specified in Article 47.
Second, the burden of proof is reversed. According to Article 6 of the Labor Dispute Mediation and Arbitration Law, where evidence related to the disputed matter is in the possession and management of the employer, the employer shall provide it; if the employer fails to provide it, the employer shall bear adverse consequences. Attendance records and payroll ledgers are both in the company's possession. Since the company failed to provide original attendance data to prove that Huang Mouyuan was absent from work, it should bear the adverse consequences of failing to meet its burden of proof.
Additionally, regarding the unpaid annual leave wages claimed by Huang Mouyuan, according to Article 5 of the Regulations on Paid Annual Leave for Employees and Article 10 of the Measures for the Implementation of Paid Annual Leave for Enterprise Employees, if the employer is genuinely unable to arrange for the employee to take annual leave due to work requirements, and with the employee's consent, the leave may not be arranged; however, the employer shall pay compensation for the unused annual leave at 300% of the daily wage income.
Judgment Result
The labor arbitration tribunal ruled in favor of Huang Mouyuan's claims regarding unpaid wages and compensation for unlawful termination. The company, dissatisfied with the ruling, filed a lawsuit with the court. The court of first instance upheld the arbitration award. The company then appealed, and the court of second instance (Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court) issued a final judgment dismissing the appeal and affirming the original decision.
From arbitration to first instance, then to second instance—three consecutive wins. Huang Mouyuan ultimately recovered his unpaid wages, compensation for unlawful dismissal (twice the amount of two months' salary calculated based on years of service), and wages for unused annual leave. On the day the judgment took effect, Huang Mouyuan sat in his lawyer's office for a long time, and finally said: "If I had just endured it back then, this money would never have been recovered."
Case Notes
Attorney Guo Yixuan's team handles dozens of labor disputes every year, and in summary, there are three pitfalls that workers are most likely to fall into:
First, not signing a labor contract or continuing to work "unprotected" after the contract expires, making it difficult to provide evidence. Second, leaving immediately when the company verbally terminates employment without securing evidence, only to have the company later claim "voluntary resignation." Third, tolerating wage deductions or job transfers in silence, only to find the statute of limitations has expired by the time you want to assert your rights (the statute of limitations for labor arbitration is one year).
Here are some practical suggestions for workers: First, sign a written contract immediately upon joining a company, and keep records of salary transactions and attendance screenshots. Second, when the company asks you to "resign voluntarily," do not sign easily—consult a lawyer first. Third, if you are unlawfully dismissed, be sure to assert your rights within the arbitration limitation period. Compensation is calculated based on years of service (two months' wages for each full year), and the longer you've worked, the more you should insist on your rights. Fourth, the path to rights protection is "arbitration → first-instance trial → second-instance trial," and you can entrust a lawyer to represent you throughout the process. After winning the case, part of the attorney fees can usually be claimed from the losing party.
If you have also experienced unfair treatment upon leaving your job, a Shenzhen labor dispute lawyer can help you calculate every penny you are entitled to and recover all the rights and benefits that rightfully belong to you, without missing a single cent.
