The suicide of a Pinduoduo staff member is trending today on Chinese social media, where discussions on tough ‘996’ working schedules (working 9am-9pm, 6 days a week) have been ongoing since the sudden death of another employee.
The staff member named Tan reportedly jumped from the 27th floor of an apartment building in their hometown of Changsha in Hunan province. The incident occurred around 0:30 AM on January 9.
Pinduoduo published a statement about the death of their employee, expressing their condolences. They also said they were awaiting the results of the ongoing investigation into the death of Tan.
Meanwhile, the company stated they would immediately open a special channel within their office system for psychological support and consultation.
Tan had been working at Pinduoduo since June of last year. He was unmarried.
Pinduoduo is China’s largest interactive online shopping platform. The company has been under fire on social media recently, with stories coming out on the company’s overwork culture that is putting an enormous strain on its employees.
The death of a 22-year-old female staff member, who suddenly collapsed after a long day of work on December 29, is still being investigated. Although no official cause of death has been given, her death has been linked to Pinduoduo’s extreme working culture.
“A Second Foxconn?”
Since Pinduoduo is making headlines again for another employee death, people on Weibo are now mentioning the electronics manufacturer Foxconn (富士康). Foxconn attracted major media attention after a series of employee suicides in 2010 and 2012 linked to low pay and poor working conditions.
On Weibo, many commenters wonder if Pinduoduo is becoming a second Foxconn.
Meanwhile, more staff members are speaking out about the Pinduoduo’s working culture. The stories of former employees of the company’s community group buying unit Duoduo Maicai (多多买菜) were shared by Sohu News. They talk about 12-hour workdays and “supersize” work weeks (超级大小周) where staff would work 13 days in a row, then get one day off, or not getting days off at all. They also speak of requirements to minimally work 300 hours per month.
Despite the waves of criticism on Pinduoduo, there are also online voices who praise the company for bringing out a clear and honest statement right after the death of their employee and opening up a support channel for staff members.
By Manya Koetse, with contributions by Miranda Barnes
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For information and support on mental health and suicide, international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org.
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