Ah, the Chinese New Year holiday… The week where business in China seems to come to a halt and the annual homeward bound migration takes place all over the country. This holiday used to mean that you need to stock on groceries because all your local shops will be closed, but not anymore. Most larger supermarkets will be open, and there’s always the food delivery apps that are working overtime.

While it’s time for China’s largest annual travel, COVID-19 has put a major damper on things and many are choosing to stay put even though it means not seeing their families for the holiday.

For those with full-time live in ayis, Chinese New Year can be a challenging time each year. Not only are you left to manage home and family on your own for a week, but there’s also always the question of whether your ayi will actually return after the CNY holiday. While it seems like a no-brainer that you should return to work after a long 10 day holiday, there are ayis who will choose to resign during CNY after receiving their holiday hongbao to spend more time with their families in their hometown, since in past years it’s never been difficult to find new employment after returning to Beijing.

This year, however, there are ayis who are choosing to stay in Beijing rather than make the trip home due to COVID-19. So what do you do when ayi chooses to stay at your home but isn’t working?

In China, if an employee is working during the public holiday they’re paid three times their normal salary. But if you didn’t ask ayi to stay and she’s not expected to work during CNY, are you expected to still pay her? No.

Recently a friend told me her live-in ayi has been foregoing going home on her weekly day off to avoid coming into contact with anyone with COVID-19. To make ayi feel more comfortable, she and her husband have been taking their newborn daughter out during the day to let their ayi stay home with some peace and quiet. While that might work for weekly day trips, it’s not a solution for the cold, 10-day CNY holiday.

If your live-in ayi wants to stay and work during CNY, what are your options?

Double or Triple Pay

If money isn’t an issue then you can work out either paying ayi double or triple her regular salary to stay and work during CNY. Note: The holiday hongbao shouldn’t be included. That’s their annual bonus and should be paid separately. Check out our blog on how much to pay for the different types of ayis.

Double Time Off

If ayi prefers to stay and work during CNY she can trade her working days for double the number of days off to be taken later when it’s safer to travel.

Partial Working Days

Ayi can rest for three (or whatever number you both decide on) days with regular pay and keep working the remainder of the holiday.

Obviously, you’re not going to let your hourly ayi stay at your home to avoid traveling during CNY. But if your live-in ayi is from somewhere that’s considered high risk and she’s choosing to stay in Beijing rather than return home, appreciate the fact that she’s putting health and safety first and make the most of your time together during the CNY holiday.

Since most people with live-in ayis have children at home, it could be a great time for the kids to learn more about ayi’s hometown and the unique holiday traditions that she grew up with. There’s no need to make it awkward and avoid the house just because ayi is there on her day off. The live-in ayi employee/employer relationship is different than that of a normal nine-to-five job. Ayi is involved in almost every aspect of your life here and becoming friends with your ayi makes communicating that much more natural and your time together more fun and educational.

KEEP READING: Are You Paying Your Ayi Enough? the Results of Our Survey Are In

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