Company In China Fines ‘Lazy’ Employees Who Use Toilet More Than Once A Day

• A company in China has sparked controversy after employees revealed they are being fined if they use the toilet more than once a day.
• According to the manager, they have been forced to implement the rule to ensure productivity because “the workers are lazy.”

A company in China is currently in hot water after it was discovered that its employees are being fined for using the bathroom. According to reports, Anpu Electric Science and Technology, a company based in Dongguan, Guangdong, has been implementing a fine of 20 yuan (US $3) for workers who take toilet breaks more than once per day.

It’s definitely an odd rule but leaked company-issued notices revealed that seven staff members have been fined on December 20 and 21. Investigations are currently ongoing after the issue reached the Dongguan Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau.

The company said they had to implement the rule to boost productivity among employees.

Meanwhile, the company’s manager, who goes by the last name Cao, defended they have not required their workers to pay the fines but deducted the amount from their bonuses instead.

“We are helpless. The fact is that the workers are lazy at work,” Cao told the media, adding that workers often stayed in the toilet to smoke and even slacked off during their shifts. “The management talked with those workers many times, but didn’t achieve a positive result yet.”

Is this even legal?

Netizens had mixed reactions about the strange policy, with someone pointing out that employees who go on bathroom breaks too long can definitely “hurt the company’s productivity.”

On the other hand, there are those who pointed out that the practice should be changed because it is abusive and illegal. “What era is it? The freedom of going to the toilet has become a luxury,” a Weibo user commented.