Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Single moms denied benefits pressing for change in China
TAIPEI, Taiwan — Sarah Gao had a busy job. As the head of a $76.8 million investment fund, she was constantly flying across China on business trips. Then she found out she was pregnant.
Her pregnancy, with her then-boyfriend, was unplanned.
Gao, at 40, did not think she would have any more chances and decided to keep the baby. What she did not realize was how that decision would lead to a nearly four-year legal battle for her maternity benefits.
Her protracted fight highlights the consequences that Chinese women face when they raise a child outside of a marriage. The vast majority are unable to access public benefits, ranging from paid maternity leave to prenatal exam coverage, because their status is in a legal gray zone. Some may even face fines.
Gao and some other single mothers want to change this. They are part of a group, organized by Advocates for Diverse Family Network, that petitioned the Legal Affairs Committee of the National People’s Congress at its recently concluded annual meeting. They don’t expect immediate action, but they hope their needs will be reflected in the legislative agenda in the future.
Following a difficult pregnancy, Gao gave birth to her daughter in November 2016. She went back to work after seven months of sick leave and maternity leave. Throughout her sick leave, her company, KunYuan Asset Management, paid her the bare minimum: $153 a month, a huge drop from her usual monthly salary of $4,606. The company did not pay her during maternity leave.
Gao pressed the company for full salary and maternity leave benefits, part of which would come from the social insurance to which companies contribute by law.
In Beijing, where Gao lives, an employee can apply for those public benefits only through their company. But Gao’s company refused to apply for her, saying her materials were incomplete because she lacked a marriage license.
When she forced the issue, the company asked her to resign. Gao refused to quit at first, but eventually she was fired.
Gao is suing the company for $153,645 in back pay, in addition to her maternity leave payment. She has lost twice in court since July 2017 and is appealing for a third time.
China’s family planning policy says that “the state encourages a husband and wife to have two children.”
At the local level, this has been interpreted to mean that only a married couple can have children.
In January, Shanghai implemented a new regulation that removed the need for a marriage permit to apply for benefits, helping women like Zou Xiaoqi, a single mother in Shanghai. Zou sued a Shanghai government agency in 2017 to get her maternity leave salary and the public insurance benefits.
After years of media interviews, court appearances and lobbying city politicians, Zou received her benefits this month.