Direct answer: Yes. Forcing someone to work by violence, threat or restriction of personal liberty is a crime under Article 244 of the Criminal Law, punishable by up to three years in ordinary cases and three to ten years when the circumstances are serious — and knowingly helping to recruit or transport the workers can be criminal too.

The Crime of Forcing Another Person to Work

Under Article 244 (as amended in 2011), whoever forces another person to work by violence, threat or restriction of personal liberty faces up to three years’ imprisonment or criminal detention plus a fine; where the circumstances are serious, three to ten years’ imprisonment plus a fine. The article also makes it an offence, punished the same way, to knowingly recruit, transport or otherwise assist another person in committing it. A company that commits either offence is fined, and the persons directly in charge and other directly responsible persons are punished under the first paragraph.

Employing Under-16s in Hazardous Work

A separate offence, Article 244-1, targets employers who violate labor regulations by hiring anyone under 16 for excessive physical labor, work at heights or underground, or in explosive, flammable, radioactive or toxic environments, where the circumstances are serious. The penalty is up to three years’ imprisonment plus a fine, rising to three to seven years where the circumstances are especially serious. If the conduct causes an accident that also amounts to another crime, the sentences are combined.

What “Forcing” Looks Like in Practice

The decisive element is coercion — violence, threats or restricting personal liberty. In practice, courts have treated conduct such as confiscating workers’ passports or identity documents, locking them in, withholding wages to stop them leaving, or running a debt-bondage arrangement as a form of coercion. Ordinary strict management alone is not enough; the prosecution must prove the coercive method. Because recruitment and transport are expressly covered, labor brokers and agencies can be liable even if they never run the workplace.

A Practical Scenario

A staffing agent supplies workers to a workshop, knowing the owner confiscates their passports and will not let them leave until a “placement fee” is repaid. The owner faces Article 244; the agent, having knowingly assisted, can be charged under the same article.

Key Takeaway

Forced labor carries real criminal exposure in China — for the employer and, since the 2011 amendment to Article 244, for anyone who assists — so keeping documents, movement and pay lawful is a compliance must, not merely an HR matter.

FAQ

Q: Is forced labor a crime in China?

A: Yes. Article 244 criminalizes forcing someone to work by violence, threat or restriction of personal liberty.

Q: What is the punishment for forced labor?

A: Up to three years’ imprisonment or criminal detention plus a fine, and three to ten years plus a fine where the circumstances are serious.

Q: Can a company be liable for forced labor?

A: Yes. The company is fined, and the persons directly in charge and other directly responsible persons are punished as individuals.

Q: Is recruiting or transporting workers for a forced-labor operation a crime?

A: Yes. Knowingly recruiting, transporting or otherwise assisting is punished the same as the main offence.

Q: What if the workers are under 16?

A: Hiring under-16s for excessive physical labor or hazardous work is a separate offence under Article 244-1, carrying up to seven years in serious cases.

Wang Guan | Co-founder, Beijing Haolue Law Firm | +86 17813108512