2.24 Employee benefits
Employee benefits mainly include salaries, bonuses, allowances and subsidies, pension insurance, social insurance and housing funds, labour union fees, employees’ education fees and other expenses related to the employees for their services. The Group recognizes employee benefits as liabilities during the accounting period when employees rendered the services and allocates the related cost of assets and expenses based on different beneficiaries.
(a) Bonus plans
The expected cost of bonus plans is recognized as a liability when the Group has a present legal or constructive obligation as a result of services rendered by employees and a reliable estimate of the obligation can be made.
(b) Retirement benefit obligations
The Group primarily pays contributions on a monthly basis to participate in a pension plan organised by the relevant municipal and provincial governments in the PRC. In 2017, the Group made monthly contributions at the rate of 20% (2016: 20%) of the qualified employees’ salaries. The municipal and provincial governments undertake to assume the retirement benefit obligations of all existing and future retired employees payable under these plans. The Group has no legal or constructive obligations for further contributions if the fund does not hold sufficient assets to pay all employees the benefit relating to their current and past services.
(c) Other social insurance and housing funds
The Group provides other social insurance and housing funds to the qualified employees in the PRC based on certain percentages of their salaries. These percentages are not to exceed the upper limits of the percentages prescribed by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security of the PRC. These benefits are paid to social security organisations and the amounts are expensed as incurred. The Group has no legal or constructive obligations for further contributions if the fund does not hold sufficient assets to pay all employees the benefit relating to their current and past services.
(d) Termination benefit obligations and early retirement benefit obligations
Termination and early retirement benefit obligations are payable when employment is terminated by the Group before the normal retirement date, or whenever an employee accepts voluntary redundancy and/or early retirement in exchange for these benefits. The Group recognizes termination and early retirement benefit obligations when it is demonstrably committed to either: terminating the employment of current employees according to a detailed formal plan without possibility of withdrawal; or providing termination benefits as a result of an offer made to encourage voluntary redundancy and/or early retirement. The specific terms vary among the terminated and early retired employees depending on various factors including position, length of service and district of the employees concerned. Benefits falling due for more than 12 months after the end of the reporting period are discounted to their present values.