Recently, many stores across the country, Qinhan Hutong, a well-known Chinese studies training institution, have suddenly closed, involving Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzhou and other cities. It was revealed that Qinhan Hutong was in arrears with the salary of teachers. Some parents of

Recently, many stores of Qinhan Hutong, a well-known Chinese studies training institution, suddenly closed across the country, involving Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzhou and other cities. It was revealed that Qinhan Hutong was in arrears with the salary of teachers. Some parents of students said that they had just paid tens of thousands of yuan in course fees and were now stuck in the vortex of difficulty in getting refunds. On August 29, New Yellow River reporters went to the Qinhan Hutong Group headquarters in Minhang District, Shanghai for an on-site visit. Many parents of students and teachers have come to defend their rights here, and some parents have gone to the nearby police station to report the case. Some police suggested that parents make "two preparations": on the one hand, after filling out the form at the police station, the economic investigation will investigate the corresponding situation and decide whether to file a case; on the other hand, parents can contact a lawyer to initiate a civil lawsuit.

In this regard, New Yellow River reporters tried to contact the relevant person in charge and staff of Qinhan Hutong Group, but did not receive an effective response. On the evening of August 28, Wang Shuangqiang, founder of Qinhan Hutong, told the media that it was temporarily closed and would actively save itself in the future and strive to retain more than half of its directly operated stores.

Qinhan Hutong has closed a large area of ​​stores, and parents and teachers have posted posts to protect their rights.

On the evening of August 26, the official account of Qinhan Hutong released a "Letter to Qinhan Hutong Students and Parents". The article responded to rumors of the Internet's "closure", saying that it started last year. , the company encountered huge challenges in its operations. In mid-August 2024, individual employees posted "closure" remarks on social media. Affected by the previous salary delay incident, it quickly turned into widespread panic, and the normal operations of each campus were seriously disrupted. The letter also stated that the founders and core team are actively communicating with potential investors to negotiate debt-for-equity swaps and equity transfers, with a view to resuming normal business as soon as possible and minimizing student losses. At the same time, we should face the current temporary difficulties in a non-evasive and non-evasive manner, actively implement the main responsibilities of the enterprise, and properly handle emergencies. The reporter noticed that the public account later deleted the open letter. At the same time, many stores in Qinhan Hutong posted "business suspension notices". It is reported that the areas currently closed include Hangzhou, Nanjing, Shanghai and other places.

A few days ago, New Yellow River reporters searched the Internet and found that since the "Letter to Qinhan Hutong Students and Parents" was released on August 26, many parents and teachers have posted articles online to speak out for themselves. A parent with an IP address in Shanghai posted, "My child has been attending classes in Qinhan Hutong for 7 years. In March this year, I have not yet attended any of the 176 new classes I bought for my child, and the courses signed under the old contract have not been taken yet. There are still 48 classes. The sales are also excessive. They know that the employees’ wages cannot be paid, but they still trick us into renewing the subscription.”

Some parents said, “I signed up my children in early July and bought 80 and got 30 free, a total of 110 classes. 13,800 yuan. When I signed up, the salesperson swore that the boss would never go bankrupt if he was very rich. Before August 26, some teachers reported online that they were being owed wages. I told the salesperson that I saw the statement online, and the salesperson said that he would go to class as soon as possible. That’s fine, it won’t be closed down for a while, and it won’t be a problem to complete these courses. As a result, the store where we teach has been closed, and no one in charge has come out to say anything.” The parent said that many parents have formed many rights protection groups. After talking to each other, many people have lost thousands to tens of thousands of yuan in tuition fees. Some parents have just signed a new contract and their children have not been able to attend a single class.

In addition to parents defending their rights, New Yellow River reporters noticed that there are also many teachers who are defending their rights. A teacher with an IP address in Zhejiang posted, "The contract was originally scheduled to pay wages on the 10th, but a notice was issued saying that wages would be paid on the 15th. When the wages were not paid on the 15th, they were informed on the 25th, and then said that the company was not operating well and had to wait until the 26th. , but the leader has not yet determined whether the salary from June 26 to July 25 will be paid, and the social security provident fund has not been paid. The teaching and training teacher relies on the salary of two months during the summer to support his family, and the rent has been extended. No. Teachers who are still working insist on taking classes out of a sense of responsibility.”

An actual visit to the Shanghai headquarters of Qinhan Hutong, many parents have already reported the case

Public information shows that Qinhan Hutong is a Chinese studies education and training service provider, mainly engaged in Chinese studies training services for children and adults. Courses include Chinese studies, calligraphy, seal cutting, Chinese painting, and Go , guzheng, guqin and other traditional cultural courses, and provides users with related competition services. The organization has opened offline campuses in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Ningbo and other cities, and Qinhan Hutong has completed multiple rounds of financing. De Chuan (Ming De Chuan Business Consulting Co., Ltd.), Yicun Capital (Yicun Capital Co., Ltd.), etc., Qinhan Hutong achieved revenue of more than 700 million yuan in 2021.

On August 29, a New Yellow River reporter searched on Dianping. It was found that most Qinhan Hutong stores in Shanghai were closed for business. Later, the reporter went to the group headquarters located at Lane 7666, Zhongchun Road, Minhang District, Shanghai. At the entrance of the park, the security guard told reporters, “Many parents have come here to protect their rights recently. . "The headquarters of Qinhan Hutong Group located in the park only retains a reception desk for parents of students and teachers. The reporter saw that many parents of students sat together to discuss the matter.

Staff on site told reporters that they Currently, wages are in arrears. If parents need to apply for service transfer or refund, they need to scan the QR code to register, and then sign the "Remaining Class Time Adjustment Agreement". After trying to scan the QR code at the scene, the New Yellow River reporter found that the students Parents need to fill in basic information such as the registered campus, student name, contact number, current courses, and how to handle the remaining class hours. The main content of the "Remaining Class Hours Adjustment Agreement" mentioned by the staff is "Confirmation of Remaining Class Hours" and "Remaining Class Hours." "Handling" and "Dispute Resolution".

Ms. Li, a parent of a student at the scene, told reporters, "My family's situation is the same as that of many parents. I haven't finished the old course yet, so I bought two more on the recommendation of the salesperson. The new class cost more than 10,000 yuan, and the teachers here are very good. I really didn’t expect this to happen. I tried calling many departments this morning, but so far I haven't received a clear response. "

Subsequently, Ms. Li also showed the reporter the course contract and the chat records with the teacher at the store where her child was working. The chat records showed that the salary of the Chinese studies teacher in July has not been paid, like many teachers who have spoken out online," The reason given by the headquarters was that there was a problem with the teacher signing system, and the audit would be delayed, and the subsequent salary was not received. They only said that the revenue was not good, and they told us to continue with classes. No one said that the campus would be closed. The boss also held two meetings and said that we can overcome the difficulties and let us stick to our posts. We have currently signed a salary deferment agreement, which is said to be settled by the end of October. This is my first job, I’ve been doing it for nine years, and it’s so painful now. "The teacher mentioned in the chat history.

Later, the New Yellow River reporter and Ms. Li went to the reception service hall of Qibao Police Station to report the incident, where many parents of students from Qinhan Hutong also gathered. A policeman received the parents of the students. It is recommended that parents make two preparations. On the one hand, after filling out the form here, the economic investigation will investigate the corresponding situation and decide whether to file a case; on the other hand, parents can contact a lawyer to initiate a civil lawsuit.

Subsequently, the reporter tried to contact the Qinhan Hutong Group. The person in charge and the staff did not receive an effective response. The reporter also tried to call the market supervision department and the education department, but they were not connected. According to the "Daily Economic News" report, on the evening of August 28, Qinhan Hutong. Founder Wang Shuangqiang once told the media that the current closure is temporary, and he will actively save himself in the future and strive to retain more than half of the directly operated stores.According to the Beijing News on August 29, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, the Market Supervision Bureau and other departments are jointly investigating the Qinhan Hutong store closure incident. The Chaoyang District Bureau of Culture and Tourism also stated that it has taken responsibility for the Qinhan Hutong Chinese Studies Shanghai Headquarters. I got in touch with someone and the other party said that the current business is difficult. "It is difficult to refund fees, and it is more likely to change courses."

Lawyers explain the Qinhan Hutong store closing crisis. How should parents and teachers protect their rights?

Many stores in Qinhan Hutong suddenly closed, causing damage to the rights and interests of parents and teachers. Is it suspected of violating the law? How should parents and teachers protect their rights? What should I pay attention to when paying fees for off-campus training institutions? On August 30, New Yellow River reporter consulted several lawyers on this matter.

Ge Shuchun, a lawyer from Beijing, said that from a civil perspective, the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China stipulates that if one party fails to perform the contract or performs the contractual obligations inconsistently with the agreement, it shall bear the liability for breach of contract such as continued performance, remedial measures or compensation for losses. In this case, if Qinhan Hutong collects tuition fees but does not provide related services, it is a typical breach of contract and a fundamental breach of contract. Since Qinhan Hutong constitutes a fundamental breach of contract, the parents of the students have the right to demand a refund of the tuition fees and terminate the contract signed by both parties. If parents suffer losses due to Qinhan Hutong’s fundamental breach of contract, they should also bear liability for compensation. Of course, this case may also be a suspected crime. If the relevant person in charge of Qinhan Hutong knows that he is no longer able to continue to provide education and training services, but still continues to enroll students and charge fees, and takes the fees collected as his own or uses them for other purposes, Then this behavior is a typical fraud.

Ge Shuchun believes that if Qinhan Hutong defaults on the wages of the relevant teachers, it is suspected of violating the relevant provisions of my country's labor law. Not only may they face penalties, they may also have to pay economic compensation, etc. However, teachers who are owed wages need to file complaints and apply for labor. arbitration. Therefore, in this incident, both parents and teachers should safeguard their rights and interests in accordance with the law. Parents of students can choose to report the case in advance. If the police determine that there is no fraud after review, the parents can go directly to the court for civil prosecution. If teachers in Qinhan Hutong want to safeguard their rights, they can first file a complaint with the labor inspection department, or they can go directly to the Arbitration Commission to apply for labor arbitration.

Lan Tianbin, senior partner of Jiangsu Fade Dongheng Law Firm, also said that parents can negotiate and settle with the company, they can request mediation from the consumer association or other legally established mediation organizations, they can complain to the relevant administrative departments, and they can reach an agreement with the company based on The arbitration agreement may be submitted to an arbitration institution for arbitration, a lawsuit may be filed in the People's Court, or the police may be called to have the public security organs find out whether a criminal offense is suspected.

Lian Dayou, director of Beijing Jingben Law Firm, reminded parents that it is indeed important to train their children to prevent them from losing at the starting line, but they should also be more vigilant and take precautions against risks when paying for off-campus training institutions. For example, conduct qualification review and on-site inspection of training institutions, carefully read the contract, be aware of evidence, understand the refund policy, be wary of induced loans, pay attention to the compliance of fees, etc. "Training institutions should abide by the principles of fairness, legality and good faith in charging fees, and should not charge fees for more than three months at a time. When parents encounter problems, they should take timely action and safeguard their rights and interests through legal channels." Lian Dayou said .

Source: New Yellow River

Editor: Xiao Yan