TechFlow news, on November 28, according to Shenzhen News Network, the Qianhai Cooperation Zone People's Court in Shenzhen recently ruled on a labor dispute case involving salary payments in cryptocurrency. The case originated in June 2021 when plaintiff Zhou was hired by a company as a senior engineer. He claimed that his monthly salary of 45,000 yuan was agreed upon with 20,000 yuan paid via bank transfer and the remaining 25,000 yuan paid in USDT. Two months later, the company terminated the employment contract citing "mismatched skills" but failed to pay the portion of the salary agreed to be paid in cryptocurrency.
The court held that according to the "Notice on Further Preventing and Dealing with the Risks of Virtual Currency Trading Speculation" issued in September 2021 by the central bank and nine other departments, virtual currencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT do not have legal tender status. Furthermore, Article 50 of the Labor Law and Article 5 of the Interim Provisions on Wage Payment clearly stipulate that wages must be paid monthly in legal tender and cannot be substituted in other forms. Ultimately, the court only supported the plaintiff’s claim regarding unlawful termination of the employment contract, ruling that the company should pay 10,000 yuan in compensation. The ruling was upheld by the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court in the second instance.
