Employee Fired for Using Phone in Restroom, Photo Display Sparks Controversy, Company Responds: Manager Took Photo Through the Crack in the Door
Recently, a disciplinary notice from a technology company in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, has sparked widespread online discussion. A probationary employee was deemed to have deserted their post and been lazy for spending a long time in the restroom and using their phone for non-work-related activities, resulting in a 200 yuan deduction from their performance bonus and termination of their labor contract.
What has further fueled the controversy is that the official notice, stamped with the company's seal, directly included a photograph of the employee using their phone in the restroom, publicly criticizing them. This has drawn criticism from a large number of internet users.
Many netizens believe that the restroom is a private space, and the company is suspected of secretly installing surveillance cameras to photograph employees, seriously infringing on their personal privacy. They also consider the management approach to be crude and non-compliant.
In response to the public controversy, the company's legal representative responded, confirming the authenticity of the circulated notice, but stating that the company did not install surveillance cameras in the restroom. The relevant images were obtained by company management personnel who discovered the employee using their phone in the restroom and took photos through the crack in the door.
According to the representative, the disciplined employee was still in the probationary period and was often difficult to find.
Regarding the false information circulating online that "the company installed surveillance cameras in the restroom," the legal representative stated that the company's administrative staff had reported the matter to the police station and filed a record.