Institute affiliated scholar Aaron Halegua testified on March 1, 2022 before the US Congressional-Executive Commission on China at a hearing on The Future of Women in China: #MeToo, Censorship, and Gender Inequality. Halegua, who wrote a 2021 report “Workplace Gender-Based Violence and Harassment in China: Harmonizing Domestic Law and Practice with International Standards,” told the committee that “China continues to improve its legislation aimed at combating sexual harassment in the workplace, but there remains room for improvement.” He said that “victims of sexual harassment still face significant obstacles in obtaining legal remedies” and “often face defamation lawsuits, retaliation, and other negative consequences for complaining.”

Chinese employers should establish procedures to investigate and resolve complaints, and global brands should ensure Chinese partners have such mechanisms in place. The U.S. government should commend China for the steps that it has taken thus far, but encourage it to do more to harmonize its domestic law and practice with the most recent international standards.

Halegua’s written testimony can be found here and a recording of the entire hearing is here.