From 09: 00-11: 30 on September 26, 2022, the 73rd Peking University Social Law Forum Series Lecture Series and the fourth Peking University Social Law Frontier Forum titled "Purposes of the Labor Law" were successfully held at Koguan Building, Peking University. The lecture was chaired by Professor Ye Jingyi, Director of Institute of Labor and Social Security Law, Peking University, attended by Professor Li Jianfei, Vice Director of Renmin University of China Institute for the Development of the Handicapped, and evaluated by Associate Professor Jin Jinping, Director of Nonprofit Organization Law Research Center of Peking University, Vice Director of Institute of Labor and Social Security Law, and Associated Professor Chen Yifeng, Peking University Law School. The lecture is part of the Law School graduate course "Social Law Topics" in the fall semester of 2022.

At the beginning of the lecture, Prof. Li Jianfei revealed the importance of the purpose of behavior exploration for the students with a vivid story, and then pointed out that the provisions should be interpreted according to their legislative purposes, so as to accurately understand their intent, and to correctly apply them, finally obtain a logical conclusion.

First of all, Prof. Li reviewed the formation process of the unilateral protection purpose of labor law. He introduced that with the change of our economic system, the strengthening of individual rights awareness and the attention of the state to formulate labor laws, drafting of labor law has gradually become a broad consensus.

Secondly, Professor Li traced the historical root of the "sole protection". He pointed out that the emergence of labor law was not born and accompanied by human beings and human labor, but rooted in the need to promote the continuous reproduction of the society after the Industrial Revolution, to regulate the power of employers and protect "free to have nothing" workers.

Moreover, Prof. Li further analyzed the performance of the weak Position of Labors in the employ relationship, indicating the purpose of unilateral and preferential Protection of Labor Law.

In addition, Prof. Li also talked about the multi-faceted discussion of the basic concepts of labor, employer and labor relationship in the process of labor law legislation and its subsequent application.

Prof. Ye Jingyi summarized the content of the lecture, thinking that Prof. Li, from the perspective of a legislator, connected the context, process, implementation and practical dilemma of the labor law, guided the students on how to understand the legislation and law practice from the perspective of jurisprudence. Among them, Prof. Li's elucidation of Marx and Engels' theory of labor shows his profound theoretical foundation, and provides a reading guide to the original works of Marxism for the students.

Associated Prof. Chen Yifeng believes that Prof. Li Jianfei's lecture is of leading significance for the development of the subject of labor law. Based on a perspective of system theory, Associated Prof. Jin Jinping believes that the realization of the goal of labor law should be systematically discussed from several dimensions, such as subject legislation, contract legislation, standard legislation, safeguard legislation, labor inspection law, etc.

After the lecture, teachers and students took photos with Prof. Li Jianfei. Through this lecture, the students have a richer understanding of the social basis of labor law, and deepened the understanding of the legislative purpose of labor law.

This series of lecture is sponsored by Dow Ann Law Foundation of Peking University.

Translated by: Liu Luwu

Edited by: Zhang Dayuan