A Chinese woman has gone viral on the internet after her unconventional protest over low salary drew widespread attention. The incident took place in Shangqiu, central China, where the employee, feeling undervalued and underpaid, reportedly slept at her desk for five hours as a form of protest against her organisation.
According to a report by the South China Morning Post, the woman believed her salary did not reflect her level of effort, prompting her to deliberately reduce her productivity as a form of protest. During office hours, she fell asleep at her desk and later justified her behaviour. “You get what you pay for,” she said.
The situation escalated when her manager found her asleep and reprimanded her, warning that repeated behaviour could lead to dismissal, the report added. In response, the woman shared an emotional video in her defence.
In the video, she claimed she had been treated unfairly and said her actions were intended to highlight what she viewed as inadequate compensation, according to the South China Morning Post. She also clarified that she had no plans to resign and simply wanted to make a statement about her salary.
However, the situation reportedly escalated further after she took a chocolate from her boss’s desk after waking up. Her boss, who is said to suffer from glucose intolerance, was reportedly left distressed after being unable to find the snack in time to manage his condition.
“My boss became enraged. He said I meant to kill him. He gave me a warning, threatening to fire me. For those who criticise me, you do not understand people like me who have such a low salary,” she said in the video, as reported by SCMP.