Introduction
The presentation will examine the broad legal framework and policy directives relating to gender equality and employment and their impact on employment practices. Within the current economic transition context, some of the issues and challenges to the full implementation of women's and men's right to non-discrimination will be identified. Some ideas will be explored as to how to meet some of these challenges within the Chinese legal system through promoting equal rights, opportunity and treatment between men and women in employment.

Legislative protection
China endorses the principle of non-discrimination . The Constitution provides for equal rights in employment. Chinese labour law and laws on the protection of women protect against sex-based discrimination in employment and provide sex specific health and safety protection. The Labor Law, as revised in 1995, and the Law on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests, 1992, provide that a labourer shall not be discriminated against on the basis of sex and that women enjoy the same rights as men in employment. In recruitment, except for occupations and positions not suitable for women as specified by the State, sex shall not be a reason to refuse the recruitment or to raise the recruitment standards. Equal pay for equal or similar work is required and men and women are to receive equal housing allocation and welfare. These laws apply to all establishments including those in the special economic zones.
The China Women Development Programme (2001-2010) addresses women and the economy and includes the following objectives: safeguarding equal rights and opportunities of women in terms of economic resources; eliminating discrimination in employment to realize equal employment of men and women (target: 40% of the work force); and eliminating poverty of women. The principle of equal pay for equal work is reiterated in the Development Programme, which also protects women's right to participate in distribution of capital, technology, and other elements of production on an equal standing with men; and assurance of equal pay for equal work between men and women under the multiple forms of payment distribution, and it calls for a reduction of the difference in income between men and women.
With respect to maternity protection, the Labor Law, the Law on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests and various regulations on female employees provide for protection of women during menstruation, pregnancy, and breastfeeding periods. During such times the employer shall not reduce the basic wage or abolish the labour contract of a female employee. The Laws also restrict the type and duration of work women can undertake during these periods such as work with specified chemicals, radioactive materials and overtime and night work. Moreover, women are prohibited from engaging in certain types of work such as in places with high concentrations of chemicals that can affect the female reproduction system. Employers must provide social insurance during childbirth, time off for pre-natal check ups, and rest breaks for breastfeeding twice a day. Large employers individually or collectively must provide a clinic, a lounge for pregnant women, a nursery and a kindergarten. Provision to complain of violation is provided. In previous years the government's subsidized work units covered these benefits, but with reducing government subsidies the responsibility is falling on the employer. In some cases, this additional cost is jeopardizing women's employment once they become pregnant. This appears to be especially true in the private sector and for many migrant women. To try to support the maternity benefit and women's employment the Trial Methods of Maternity Insurance of Enterprise Employees was introduced in 1994 for provision of maternity and related benefits under a contributory collective insurance scheme unrelated to an individual woman's pregnancies.
Despite the above legal protection, some other regulatory provisions may encourage female layoffs and unemployment. The Regulations on the Arrangement of Redundant Staff in State Owned Enterprises allow women to take a two-year leave period during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Enterprises are said to encourage retirement of pregnant women or new mothers. Also the Temporary Regulations on the Employment and Examination of Workers provide that jobs suitable for women should be given to young women if possible. On the issue of retirement, by law the age of retirement for women is 5 years less than that of men. In cities, where a person has a workers' status, female retirement age is 50 and male 55; if a person has a cadre status, a female shall retire at 55 and a male at 60. This means that women's chances of attaining higher ranks and pensions before retirement is reduced compared to men.

Practical application and future reflection
The reform and opening-up in the economic and social fields offer many opportunities and challenges for women's employment in relation to that of men. There is a wider range of employment opportunities for women in new industries. However, as a result of the restructuring, many women, especially older women, employed in the state sector have been the first and often the majority of those to be laid off. Official statistics show that women are much more likely to remain unemployed longer than men. Older women are very unlikely to be(re)employed.
In practice many employers exhibit preferences for hiring male employees. Some job advertisements publicly call for male candidates over female candidates. Employer preferences and biases on grounds of physical characteristics, age, state of health and ethnicity can compound discriminatory treatment against women. Pregnant women can be considered too costly to employ. Both women and men are migrating and often end up in jobs without adequate legal protection as to the terms and conditions of employment. By refusing to sign labour contracts or through payment by piecework, employers are able to bypass the statutorily prescribed treatment of labourers. When women are employed they are very unlikely to be in high-level supervisory positions. With respect to equal pay, official wage and income statistics disaggregated by sex are not systematically collected. However the All- China Women's Federation does some monitoring of wage levels of women and men and has reported that differential payments exist between men and women including in non-wage payments.
As has been indicated in a comprehensive study on the impact of China's labour laws on women, and has been born out by ILO study and workshop discourse, the legal right to equality is established. However, the laws adopted to protect women and to promote non-discrimination, focus primarily on the biological differences between the sexes and accept that suitability of jobs is sex based rather than being on individual capacity. At the same time they do not appear to emphasize or specify the equality and non-discrimination aspects of the law. For instance the term discrimination is not defined, nor does the law distinguish between direct and indirect forms of discrimination. Sexual harassment is not covered in the law nor is the concept of promoting equal pay for work of equal value.
In order to ensure that women are able to remain in or attain decent work in conditions of equality and dignity with men, certain regulatory- related activities could be used. Firstly the laws and regulations could be reviewed from a perspective of promoting non-discrimination and gender equality as well as identifying necessary and up to date sex based biological protective measures. Provisions specifying the right to equal employment opportunity and treatment and the prohibition of sex discrimination in access to training, employment, conditions of work, equal pay for work of equal value, promotions and security of employment could be introduced into existing or new laws, or emphasized in directives or interpretations of the existing laws. Practical guidance documents could be prepared for workers and employers to explain how to avoid discriminatory employment practices in areas such as recruitment, hiring, remuneration and promotion. In order to facilitate women's access to all job opportunities and remove unnecessary barriers, laws and regulations could be reviewed to remove or revise restrictive protective provisions on women's health and safety that are not maternity related. The sex-based suitability measure could be de-emphasized in favour of individual merit and ability. The rights of women to maternity protection should be promoted and enforced. Innovative measures could be developed to continue to support reconciliation of work and family responsibilities through social and support services. To assist in reducing discrimination against pregnant or nursing women, the transition measures on maternity protection provisions could be mandated for all employers as the social security system is developed.
Within the many training and re-employment programmes specific targets could be established for participation and employment of women. Within the new directives and guidance measures on remuneration systems in enterprises, methods to promote equal pay between men and women for work of equal value could be included. The capacity of labour inspectors could be built up to monitor, resolve complaints and enforce the law. The statistical collection of labour market indicators including wages should be disaggregated to allow for a gender analysis of worker remuneration. Additional monitoring mechanisms could be used to assess and report on the situation of women and men in the labour market. Existing procedures and remedies for complaints and dispute settlement could be reinforced. A massive legal literacy campaign could be undertaken with policy directive support to highlight the important contribution of women and to tackle and remedy non-discrimination in hiring, pay, promotion and security of employment so that women can play their needed and equitable role in the continued economic development of the country in the private as well as public sectors.
At the international level, China has ratified the UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women, the UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination and the ILO Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100).
The Regulations of the Types of Work Unsuitable to Women Workers, 1990, prohibit women from working at a mine or down a pit, some forestry work, any work which requires physical labour with Grade IV intensity as stipulated in the Classification schedule, assembling and dismantling of scaffolding, overhead electrical work and any work requiring the labourer to bear a heavy burden continuously or one weighing more than 20 kilos. Women are also prohibited from working in high altitudes or extreme temperatures.