Chinese Company Criticized For Setting Up Timers In Employees Toilets

Recently, Kuaishou, a technology company in Beijing, has sparked outrage among Chinese Internet users after photos of its employee toilets were posted online.

In the photos, digital timers could be seen hanging over each toilet stall and small sensors installed on the door of each cubicle to trigger the times. The company is under fire for monitoring and timing the time its office workers spend in the toilet in order to increase productivity as well as its profit.

Some say that the practice of the company is a violation of privacy and human rights. Meanwhile, some even defend the company, explaining that some staff abuse bathroom breaks and use it to spend time using their phones.

Generally, online feedback was negative. Eventually, the technology company had to go online and explain its practice. In its official press release, Kuaishou said that the timers were not used to limit the time the employees spend in the toilet. Instead, it was meant to be a solution to a toilet shortage problem.

The office building of the company doesn’t have enough restrooms for its employees. And its layout makes it impossible to construct new facilities. So the company decided to use the timers to see how many people would use a cubicle and the time they spend in there to determine the number of portable toilets that the company needs to install.

While the explanation does make sense, it couldn’t convince social media users. This is not the first time we see something like this. A Shanghai-based company was reported to limit the toilet use of employees to only 10 minutes per day.

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