A top unionist on Monday pledged to use the law to prevent migrant workers from losing their jobs amid the global financial crisis.

"We will use all labor-related laws to help migrant workers keep their jobs in this difficult time," Zhang Mingqi, vice chairman of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions said on the sidelines of the National People's Congress (NPC) session.

"Even if the workers are laid off, we will ensure they get the compensation due to them in time," he added.

Factory closures in the coastal regions, mainly because of the slump in China's foreign trade, have forced employers to lay off about 20 million migrant workers, Zhang said.

In some cities, like Dongguan, Guangdong province, however, many employers whose businesses failed have fled to evade paying compensation to their employees, he said.

"We urge governments at all levels to set up an emergency response system to prevent such incidents from happening again," said Zhang.

He said his federation will help jobless migrant workers across the country to find "decent work" again.

In another development, a senior legislator has said China will "strengthen enforcement of labor laws" to protect workers' rights.

Xin Chunying, the deputy director of the legislative affairs commission of the NPC Standing Committee, said the Labor Contract Law will not be amended because of the current global economic downturn.

"The crisis has nothing to do with the law. We won't amend the law because of the downturn," she told a press conference of the ongoing NPC session yesterday.