CHINA WOMAN DENIED COMPENSATION AFTER FIRED FOR OBSTRUCTING OFFICE SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS WITH UMBRELLAS
- Company says woman shielded desk from supervision, leaving uncertainty about whether she was working or engaging in tasks unrelated to job
A woman in southern China sued her employers after she was fired because she repeatedly opened two umbrellas over her desk to block the corporate surveillance system, which she said put her at risk of accidentally exposing herself to her all-male bosses.
The woman, surnamed Wang, from Shenzhen, Guangdong province in southern China, took the company to three different courts following her dismissal in 2019. All of them refused her claim of 300,000 yuan (US$41,000), according to the mainland outlet Labour News.
The Guangdong Provincial High Court was the final court to reject the woman's claim.
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The courts said Wang's worry that the surveillance cameras would accidentally capture her private parts was based on an "extreme thought" and that she would not have "wardrobe malfunctions" if she was dressed to typical corporate standards.
The judges added that it is acceptable for a company to install surveillance cameras in their business.
Wang was fired after she had opened her umbrellas for 18 consecutive days following the installation of the monitoring system in 2019. A human resources manager told Wang twice not to block the cameras, and the HR department also sent her written warning letters twice.
However, these were all ignored by Wang, who continued her surveillance-blocking behaviour.
The company, whose name was not released in the report, fired Wang in July 2019 for "a serious breach of discipline".
Corporate management said Wang unfolded the umbrellas to cover her desk and avoid being supervised by her superiors. As a result, the company said it was unsure whether she was working, playing on her mobile phone, or performing other tasks unrelated to her job.
Online mainland commenters largely supported the company in this case.
"Why not wear more clothes? She was apparently trying to annoy the company," said one person on Douyin, China's TikTok.
But another user said: "With so many surveillance cameras in the office, the job must be quite boring."
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This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.
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2024-07-03T01:18:45Z dg43tfdfdgfd