Chapter 5
Edward Quan ·
“Third, the company unlawfully transferred you. Unilaterally sending you to the warehouse amounts to a disguised pay cut.”
“Fourth, it unlawfully terminated your labor contract. Its reasons are insufficient, so it must pay compensation.”
I listened and nodded.
“How much can I recover?”
“Conservatively, at least two hundred thousand.”
Attorney Wang said, “If this goes to court, it could be even more.”
I took a deep breath.
“Then let’s sue.”
“Good.”
Attorney Wang closed the files.
“Next Monday, we’ll file a case with the labor inspection team.”
“After that, we’ll submit an arbitration application.”
“We should have a result in as little as a month.”
I nodded.
“Thank you, Attorney Wang.”
“Don’t mention it.”
He smiled.
“I don’t meet many people who stand up for their lawful rights like you do.”
“Most people just swallow their anger.”
“I’ve swallowed enough.”
I said, “Three years is long enough. It’s time to get it back.”
I walked out of the law office.
My phone rang.
It was Wang.
“Fang Zheng, something happened.”
My heart tightened.
“What?”
“The company suddenly issued a notice today.”
Wang’s voice was shaking.
“They’re laying people off.”
“My name’s on the list.”
I frowned.
“Layoffs? What reason did they give?”
“They said it was a business adjustment.”
Wang sounded close to tears.
“But I know it’s because I calculated my overtime pay.”
“Manager Zhao is retaliating against me.”
I took a deep breath.
“Don’t panic.”
“There’s a process for layoffs. He can’t just fire you because he feels like it.”
“Has he offered you N-plus-one compensation?”
“No.”
Wang said, “He just told me to leave next week.”
“Then it’s unlawful.”
I said, “Don’t sign anything yet.”
“I’ll send you Attorney Wang’s contact information.”
“Go talk to him.”
“Okay, okay.”
Wang hung up.
I stood by the road, fists clenched.
Manager Zhao was settling scores now.
No.
I couldn’t let him get away with it.
—
Monday.
Attorney Wang and I went to the labor inspection office.
We submitted the documents.
An officer reviewed them and nodded.
“We’ll open an investigation.”
“If the facts are as stated, we’ll order the company to rectify the violations.”
“If it still refuses to comply, the case will proceed to arbitration.”
I breathed a sigh of relief.
“Thank you.”
When I got home, Wang sent me a message.
“Fang Zheng, I went to see Attorney Wang.”
“He said I have a good chance of winning too.”
“I’ve decided not to resign. I’m going to sue the company.”
I replied, “Keep it up.”
“Let’s take them down together.”
Over the following days, the company descended into chaos.
First, Wang refused to sign the resignation agreement.
Then Zhang Wei also filed a complaint with the labor inspection team.
After that, three more coworkers joined in.
Manager Zhao was furious.
He cursed up a storm in the company group chat.
“You ungrateful bunch!”
“The company has supported you all this time, and this is how you repay us?”
“Fine! If you don’t want to work here, get out!”
The result?
Even more people filed complaints.
A week later, the labor inspection team issued a Notice to Rectify Violations.
The company was ordered to:
1. Pay all outstanding overtime wages.
2. Cancel the unlawful employee transfer.
3. Withdraw the unlawful termination notice.
4. Restore the performance pay it had maliciously deducted.
Manager Zhao turned green when he received the notice.
He called me.
“Fang Zheng, are you satisfied now?”
I answered.
“Manager Zhao, this isn’t about whether I’m satisfied.”
“You owe me this money. It’s time to pay up.”
“You—”
He was so angry he couldn’t get the words out.
“Fine. Just wait.”
“The company won’t let this go.”
I laughed.
“Then I’ll see you in court.”
I hung up and lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling.
Suddenly, it felt as if the resentment I’d carried for three years had finally begun to lift.
—
【Chapter 7】
A month later, the labor arbitration hearing began.
Attorney Wang and I sat on the claimant’s side.
Across from us were Manager Zhao and the company’s lawyer.
When Manager Zhao saw me, he looked ready to kill.
I calmly nodded in greeting.
The arbitrator opened the hearing.
“Claimant, please state the facts and the grounds for your claim.”
Attorney Wang stood.
“Arbitrator, the facts of this case are clear, and the evidence is complete.”
He took out a stack of documents.
“First, the respondent owes the claimant a total of 83,000 yuan in overtime pay.”
“These are the time-clock records and work emails from the past three years.”
“Second, the respondent used an absurd pretext to withhold 10,000 yuan of the claimant’s year-end bonus.”
“Here is the audio recording.”
“Third, the respondent unlawfully transferred the claimant, which amounted to a disguised pay cut.”
“Here is the transfer notice and the claimant’s written refusal.”
“Fourth, the respondent unlawfully terminated the claimant’s labor contract.”
“Here is the termination notice.”
Attorney Wang laid out each point one by one.
His logic was clear, and the evidence was solid.