"Want to Work After a Nap? That's Impossible"
Strengthening Attendance Management and Banning Daytime Lights Off
"If the performance is good, there is no need for overtime work. If an employee has good results and puts in effort, the company will never be able to fire them. However, if an employee has poor results and makes no effort, the company cannot tolerate that. It will use various methods to expel them."
Liu Changdong, chairman of China's JD.com, who has become the center of controversy by suddenly notifying some employees of their dismissal, tightening attendance checks, and adjusting lunch breaks, spoke out directly. He indirectly revealed that the dismissals were due to performance or attitude issues, while also offering a 'carrot' by promising significant salary increases for employees.
According to China's Pengpai News on the 26th, Chairman Liu announced a substantial wage increase for the purchasing and sales departments during a recent internal meeting, stating, "Employees who have had poor performance for a long time and have not made any effort so far are not my brothers." At the same meeting, he also criticized the company's 'nap culture.' He asked, "Do you want to turn off the lights at lunch, sleep for two hours, and then work hard afterward?" and emphasized, "That is impossible."
Prior to this, JD.com internally strengthened attendance management, shortened lunch breaks, and dismissed some employees, sparking controversy. This issue became a hot topic on social networking services (SNS) under the name '521 Incident.' In particular, criticism grew after news spread that an employee who worked overtime until dawn preparing for China's largest discount event, the '618 Festival,' was notified of dismissal the next day. According to local reports, starting this week, JD.com will count the number of employees arriving at work by 9 a.m. daily, require reasons for tardiness, shorten lunch breaks to 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., and newly enforce a rule that lights must not be turned off during lunch.
Chairman Liu seemed aware of this situation and announced a sudden wage increase plan. He explained that wages for employees in the purchasing and sales fields will increase by at least 20%, up to 100%, with an average of 50%. He said, "I hope the salaries will become the highest in the industry," and added, "We will also establish an incentive fund of 10 million yuan (approximately 1.882 billion KRW) per department." He continued, "After continuous salary improvements, other compensations will also improve," and stated, "Within two years, we will raise the annual salary of all purchasing and sales employees to the equivalent of 20 months of their current monthly pay." However, he did not disclose specific details or plans regarding the wage increase.
In the first quarter, JD.com's sales reached 260 billion yuan, a 7% increase compared to the same period last year. However, the profit growth rate was only 17.2%, falling far short of last year's growth rate, which had more than tripled. The market interprets this slowdown in growth as prompting the management to initiate a mood reset due to a sense of crisis. Pengpai News evaluated, "The management considers the company's lax and poor management and slow development as serious problems in an increasingly competitive environment over the past few years, and has been making various adjustments. Although this will cause pain, it will also help stimulate internal employee enthusiasm and provide a fair environment."
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