Pinduoduo employee’s death renews controversy over China’s 996 overwork culture, sparking an investigation

News of a Pinduoduo employee’s death went viral online as netizens connected it to the Chinese tech industry’s brutal ‘996’ work schedule. The e-commerce company did not mention the employee’s long working hours, but Shanghai authorities opened an investigation into the company’s labour conditions. — SCMP

A 22-year-old female employee at Chinese e-commerce giant Pinduoduo died last week after working long hours past midnight, sparking an investigation into the company from Shanghai authorities and renewing discussions on social media about tech companies’ notorious “996” overwork culture.

Pinduoduo confirmed the death of an employee at its community group buying unit Duoduo Maicai in China’s western region of Xinjiang, according to a company statement on Monday. The employee, a woman surnamed Zhang who was born in 1998, collapsed at around 1.30am on Dec 29 while she was walking home from work with colleagues, the statement said. Her colleagues sent her to a nearby hospital, where she died six hours later, it said.