Arlo Kipfer

Arlo is based in Bogotá, where he advises clients on Latin America and China business issues. In addition, Arlo has advised clients on the establishment of several independent and joint venture international schools and he is a frequent speaker at international school conferences.

China employment lawyers

China Employee Social Insurance Laws

It is not news that Chinese labor authorities have been cracking down on employers that fail to make social insurance payments for their employees. What is news is that Chinese labor authorities are taking that enforcement to the next level. Last week, 28 government departments (including the National Development and Reform Commission, the People’s Bank

China employment lawyer

China Employee Warning Signs

My law firm’s China employment lawyers have done a ton of employer audits this year and from those we compiled the following list of the most common “warning signs” of impending employment problems. 1. All or some of your employment documents are in English only If your employment documents are in English, you are giving

Artificial Intelligence AI

China’s Artificial Intelligence Plan

The Chinese government is constantly working to push Chinese manufacturing up the value chain. More recently, the push from the central government has become more formalized, resulting in the 2015 issuance of the State Council manufacturing modernization manifesto: Made in China 2025《中国制造2025》(State Council, July 7, 2015). Made in China 2025 focuses less on the types

China data protection lawyers

China Data Protection Rules

Earlier this year, China released the final version of the national standard on personal information protection, GB/T 35273-2017 Information Technology – Personal Information Security Specification (信息安全技术 个人信息安全规范) (the “Specification”).  The Specification will take effect on May 1, 2018. The Specification is not a law or regulation that requires mandatory compliance. However, it likely will be

vintage insurance policy contract

China Expat Employment Contracts: The 101

If you are an expat working or seeking a job in China, your China employment contract matters. If you plan to travel to China to take a new job there (or even just take a new job there) you should do all of the following Have your proposed employment contract checked by a China employment

China online gaming laws

Selling Online Games to China

1. China Prohibits Foreign Investment in Online Game Publishing Goreign companies are not allowed to invest in online game publishing in China. Reiterated in the 2016 Administration Rules for Online Publishing Service (2016 OPS Rules), online games are considered online publications and offering such publications via information networks is providing online publishing services. According to

China employment law on pregnancy

China Employment Laws and Female Employees

China has many special laws/rules related to protecting female workers, especially those who are pregnant, nursing, or on maternity leave. For example, Chinese law generally prohibits employers from unilaterally terminating the employment contract of a pregnant or nursing employee or an employee on maternity leave. The only exception to this is that the employee may be unilaterally

China business law

China Employment Contracts: Localization is Key

You should have a China-centric contract when doing business in China or even with China. See China Contracts: Make Them Enforceable Or Don’t Bother. This holds doubly true for employment contracts with China employees because those agreements are highly local. And though I should not have to say this, translating your existing employment agreements into

China Employment Law

China Employee Working Hour Laws

China employees have many rights they cannot contract away. China employee working hours is a good example of this. As I have written previously, most China employees can only work under China’s “standard working hours system,” and in most places in China, that means a 40-hour work week — 8 hours a day and 5

China employment lawyer

China Employee Salary Reductions: Difficult But Not Impossible

Because labor remuneration is an often-litigated issue in China, employers should be careful when reducing employee salaries and they should take that action only when prepared to defend it before an arbitrator or a judge. As with China-based employee terminations, the best way to proceed and avoid employment disputes will usually via a mutual agreement