China firm confines worker to ‘small dark room’ for 4 days with no power, computer or phone

The court decided that Guangzhou Duoyi Network’s subsidiary in Sichuan should pay the employee, Liu Linzhu, 380,000 yuan (US$52,000) in compensation for their actions.

However, the company responded by saying: “We believe that there are many problems with the labour laws which severely hinder economic development and are arbitrarily enforced by judges who distort the facts.”

The court’s official website has not yet made records of the trial public.

Liu’s lawyer confirmed the authenticity of the published court document with Shangyou News, a municipal government-owned newspaper.

The story began to unfold in December 2022 when Liu found that he could not log into the company’s computer system or use his entry pass.

This happened following protracted negotiations over his resignation.

The firm told Liu he was required to participate in “training” and took him to a room of a different floor from his usual work station.

The room was completely dark because there was no power supply.

It was devoid of colleagues and computers, and was furnished only with a table and chair.

Over a four-day period, although Liu was allowed to leave the room “freely”, including going home after “work”, he was assigned no tasks and his mobile phone was confiscated.

It was only on day five, after Liu’s wife reported the company’s treatment of her husband to the police, that an official notice laying him off was issued.

In a bid to avoid paying compensation, Guangzhou Duoyi Network insisted the lay-off was because Liu had violated company policies.

He was accused of viewing nude images and browsing unrelated websites during working hours.

However, as a game art editor, Liu argued that the images he viewed were for work purposes.

The lower court agreed with Liu.

It ruled that confining Liu to the dark room was illegal under Labour Contract Law, which mandates employers provide proper working conditions for employees.

The company have made no further comment on the case, while online observers largely supported the court’s decision.

They also expressed astonishment at the company’s strict regulations prohibiting employees from carrying mobile phones at work, communicating privately among themselves or engaging in social activities together after work.

“You are the only company I have seen that dares to place your own policies above the labour laws,” one person commented under the company’s Weibo post, attracting more than 4,000 likes.

“Who else would dare to work at this company now?” said another person.

It is not the first time the company also has found itself in hot water.

In 2020 the firm’s chief executive officer, Xu Bo, said in a statement: “This year the company has performed well, with significant profit growth.

“The company has decided to allow employees to voluntarily apply for a 10 per cent reduction in their monthly salary.”

Several employees told the mainland publication Hongxing News that the so-called “voluntary pay cut” was actually a test of obedience and loyalty.