"No Extramarital Affair Or Divorce": China Company's Rule On Married Employees

According to the South China Morning Post, a Chinese company has sparked a heated debate on social media after it issued a new rule under which employees will be terminated if found to be cheating on their partner. The Zhejiang-based company introduced the "extramarital affair prohibition" rule on June 9, which applies to all married employees.

Explaining the new rule, the company announced in a document that this move was introduced to "strengthen the company’s inner management, to advocate a corporate culture of being loyal to family and love between a husband and wife, to better protect the family, and to focus on work; all employees who are married are barred from vicious behaviours like having an extramarital affair or keeping a mistress.''

China Company Rule On Marriage

The company also added that it was henceforth implementing the 4 N’s policy – "No illicit relationship, no mistress, no extramarital affair, and no divorce."

The exact reason for the company's decision to implement this rule or if any workplace affair was involved in the introduction of this rule is unknown.

Many netizens welcomed this move, and some criticised the company for infringing on an individual’s personal freedom and privacy. While it is acceptable to take the initiative against extramarital affairs, which are immoral and illegal, the question of whether they can be used to terminate an individual’s job arises.

This article in no way supports extramarital affairs or illicit relationships; however, how legitimate is it to fire an employee just because they are involved in an extramarital affair? Isn’t that their personal lives, and shouldn’t the law be investigating such matters and deciding whether or not an individual has participated in an illegal activity?

Shouldn’t employees be evaluated based on their qualifications, skills, and talents? According to lawyer Chen Dong, an employee can take action against the company to protect their rights according to the country’s laws. He added that while they do encourage companies to encourage employers to promote the right values, they believe that companies cannot infringe on employees' rights because they are indulged in an extramarital affair.

However, the argument about whether an employee's morality should also be taken into consideration remains. In a way, the consequence of getting terminated from their job might instill a moral fear in people who might consider indulging in extramarital relationships. But shouldn’t the country be enforcing such laws after considering all the pros and cons? Like the lawyer pointed out, wouldn’t it be an infringement of an employer’s rights if they got terminated for something that was happening in their personal life?

That being said, one thing that surely needs to be taken off this list is "no divorce." If the company terminates an employee just because they have gotten divorced, is it suggesting that people continue to live in unhappy or toxic marriages instead? Divorce is a fundamental human right, and it’s definitely not acceptable for any organisation to terminate an employee for getting a divorce.

While the other three reasons, including extramarital affairs, illicit relationships, and having a mistress, are immoral, it’s the law that should determine whether or not they can be considered a substantial reason to terminate an employee from their job.

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