A survey by the Chinese University of Hong Kong this year revealed that nearly 80% of employees give part of their salary every month to parents.

A boss in Guangzhou has, in fact, made this practice a mandatory one.

Last week, Guangzhou Daily  reported the boss of a beauty salon chain mandates employees to give part of their salary to parents.

Put into effect three years ago, the article reported married staff in the salon are required to hand over 5% of their salaries to their parents, while single staff are expected to cough up 10% of their pay.

To ensure they have received the right amount of cash, the company regularly calls up parents of staff and speaks with them.

This arrangement had been, according to the article, discussed prior to the hiring of staff, to ensure they were aware of the idea.

This policy has sparked much controversies.

While many think that it is unreasonable for employers to force staff to give their parents money, management of the salon believes it is justified as filial piety is an important traditional Chinese value – and one which the company hopes to include in its corporate culture.

Interestingly, this salon is not the first to make up rules to require children to take care of parents.

In 2013, Mainland China had added a law requiring children to visit parents regularly, while in Taiwan people can end up in jail for not supporting their  parents.

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