Case Description

Case 1: According to the Employee Handbook of Company A, the company implements a strict confidentiality system for wages and bonuses. Employees are not allowed to disclose their wages to others, inquire or discuss their own and others' wages. Violation of the wage confidentiality system is considered a serious violation of the company's labor discipline, and the company has the right to immediately terminate the labor contract. The above system is commonly referred to as the "salary confidentiality system". Li is a salesperson of Company A, whose salary consists of basic salary, performance commission, and welfare allowance. When chatting with other employees of Company A, Li found that his annual salary differed significantly from that of employees in the same position, so he kept the salary slips of other employees and listed his salary in the email requesting a salary increase from the leader. Company A believes that Li's behavior violated the salary confidentiality system and terminates the labor contract on the grounds that Li seriously violated the rules and regulations. Li believes that the salary confidentiality system established by Company A excludes the legitimate rights of workers, limits the right to know of employees in the same position, and violates the principle of equal pay for equal work. He requests that Company A be deemed to have illegally terminated the system. The court believes that employing units adopting a salary confidentiality system have advantages in protecting employee privacy, preventing employee competition, reducing employee conflict and turnover, and facilitating enterprise management. Within a reasonable range, the law should be respected, and both contracting parties should be bound by this. The email sent by Li himself listed the salary situation of himself and other employees, and it was found that there were indeed violations of regulations. Company A did not improperly terminate the contract in accordance with the relevant provisions of the employee handbook.

Case 2: Company B has established the same "salary confidentiality system" as Company A. Zhang, a security guard of Company B, was dissatisfied with the annual assessment results and sent his personal salary slip to the security WeChat work group. Company B unilaterally terminated the labor contract on the grounds that Zhang violated the salary confidentiality system. Zhang requested that Company B be deemed to have illegally terminated the contract. The court believes that firstly, the salary confidentiality system is generally applicable to positions where work performance is difficult to quantify, special treatment, or the introduction of special talents. Zhang's position is as a security guard, and generally, the salary difference between security positions is not too large. For security guards, protecting their right to equal pay for equal work is more valuable than limiting their mutual knowledge of the salary situation. Secondly, for the salary of security positions, Company B should and has the conditions to achieve quantification and transparency by formulating specific assessment standards. Once again, Zhang posted his personal salary statement on the security WeChat work group, which had a limited impact. Based on existing evidence, Zhang's behavior did not have a significant impact on Company B. Finally, both in terms of reason and the original intention of the salary confidentiality system, the requirements for security personnel to maintain salary confidentiality are to some extent too strict. In summary, the act of Company B terminating Zhang's labor contract should be deemed as illegal termination.

Lawyer Analysis

By comparing the cases of Case 1 and Case 2, we can find that the cases of Case 1 and Case 2 are basically the same, but the court has made a completely opposite judgment. What is the reason for this? When an employer unilaterally terminates a labor contract on the grounds that the employee violates the salary confidentiality system, how should they consider it to avoid being deemed illegal to terminate the labor contract. The author believes that the following factors can be considered: (1) the rationality of the salary confidentiality system itself. At present, judicial practice recognizes the legitimacy of the salary confidentiality system that has undergone democratic consultation and public disclosure procedures, but the rationality of the content and scope of application of the salary confidentiality system will also be considered during the case trial process. In Case 2, the court held that the requirement for salary confidentiality by security personnel was to some extent too strict, which denied the rationality of the scope of application of the employer's salary confidentiality system; (2) Recognition of employees' violation of the salary confidentiality system. Employers should recognize the legality, rationality, and possible consequences of workers' behavior in violation of the salary confidentiality system; (3) Whether negligence and punishment are equal. Employers should take reasonable management measures, strengthen guidance and regulation, and even impose penalties on employees for some negligent behaviors, especially those with significantly minor circumstances, rather than directly dismissing them.