How online activism challenged discrimination in China's tech industry

Despite the popular belief in China that tech work is a privileged profession, reports reveal that it is often mixed with stress, long hours, and insecurity.

The industry is also rife with institutionalised gender discrimination. Women make up a significant part of the workforce, but can face a hostile work culture.

One worker I spoke to during my fieldwork was told during her interview not to make major life plans such as starting a family because the job was demanding.

In other words, recruiters were screening applicants based on whether or not they planned to get pregnant.

This is common in China’s tech industry. There are also numerous examples of Chinese tech companies laying off pregnant workers.

Sexual harassment is not uncommon either. However, these incidents are not widely documented as they often go unreported, are ignored, or are settled privately.

Social media driving change in the workplace

There is normally little that can be done to improve working conditions for women in China given the absence of a free press, no independent women’s advocacy groups, and a lack of effective political and union representation.

However, the use of social media to protest against one recent incident proved highly successful, leading to direct action and wider change.

Ms Zhou was a female worker at the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.

In August 2021 she protested in the staff canteen, having allegedly been raped by her manager.

Her action led to more than 6,000 tech workers signing an online petition demanding that Alibaba investigate the issue.

They also demanded the implementation of institutional and policy changes intended to promote a better work environment for women.

The 2,000-word open letter entitled The Joint Initiative of 6,000 Ali-People on the 807 Incident was widely circulated to workers in other tech companies and the public.

The petitioners called on the police and the company to investigate the incident impartially and provide answers and compensation to the victim.

They also urged the company to reflect on its business culture – especially how it received and responded to complaints – and the protection of women in the workplace.

The petition spread widely on social media and attracted journalistic attention, including the official Chinese Communist Party’s news outlet People’s Daily.

This placed enormous pressure on Alibaba’s senior management. Before long, CEO Daniel Zhang announced that the accused manager had been dishonourably discharged.

The senior managers who had refused to follow up on Ms Zhou’s complaints were also compelled to resign, and the human resource director received a demerit penalty.

In addition, Mr Zhang stressed that there would be zero tolerance for sexual crime at Alibaba and quickly established a special working group reporting directly to the board of directors.

Other leading Chinese tech firms, including Tencent, also committed to review workplace policies against gender discrimination.

How social media activism avoids legal restrictions

The type of event highlighted by the 807 social media activism is not unique to China. Similar behaviour was common during the 1960s and 1970s in the UK.

The press, unions, and women’s groups were instrumental in achieving change in the UK.

However, the lack of civil societies in China means the process of cultural change may need to take other forms through different mediums.

In the past, strikes, road blockages, and workplace walkouts were common strategies to encourage employers in China to negotiate with workers’ representatives.

But without legal protection, and with the state taking an increasingly repressive approach to activism, these strategies are becoming risky.

Instead, the 807 movement was organised without the involvement of the official union, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) and the petitioners did not walk out.

That meant the countermeasures used to crack down on previous action – such as arresting a leader or using security forces to disband crowds – were meaningless.

Like their Western counterparts, most tech workers in China have not joined unions. But unlike the West, all forms of strikes and walkouts are illegal in China, and the oversupplied job market means employees can easily be fired and replaced.

During my fieldwork, I spoke to workers about their concerns over joining the ACFTU, which is seen as ineffectual in cases concerning equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI).

In contrast, the 807 activism shows that social media can be used to organise and empower workers and create meaningful changes in the workplace.

My research suggests that workers should be flexible and creative in battling for a better workplace.

More consumer action would also help improve worker conditions in China and elsewhere.

A greater understanding and discussion of how tech products are produced would put pressure on employers to take issues of equality – and wider issues of diversity and inclusion – more seriously, as well as looking at improving workplace conditions for all.

The 807 event provides valuable lessons related to labour movements in the digital economy around the world, particularly in non-democratic contexts where grassroots unions are prohibited.

Harnessing social media as a public platform for EDI

For those operating in countries where unions are permitted and effective, the 807 activism reveals how social media can improve engagement with members and audiences.

It also demonstrates how social media can enable new forms of connection between unions and other social groups. This can lead to union revitalisation.

In the case of EDI in particular, social media provides a public platform for marginalised groups.

It can build international solidarity, help global consumers understand how products are made, and support disadvantaged workers by pressuring employers to improve equality and workplace conditions for all.

This makes it an invaluable tool for workers pursuing more equitable and inclusive conditions, especially in China and other countries where gender and minority rights are not well protected by organisations or the legal system.

When EDI measures are first implemented, they can require organisational and cultural changes. This can involve some trial and error, and comes with a financial cost.

Affirmative action can lead to a backlash on social media from those who consider any decision based on race or gender to be unwelcome.

It can also provoke counterclaims of discrimination from workers from majority groups who feel they have been adversely affected by the measures.

However, organisations that strike the right balance in creating an inclusive environment, where employees believe they are all in the same boat, will outperform those that do not.

Further reading:

Why is cultural marginalisation important for organisations?

How to reduce AI bias

Why don't more women reach the boardroom?

How will AI affect diversity and inclusion?

Hong Yu Liu is a former Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Warwick Business School and holds a Research Fellowship at the Institute for the Future Work, where he contributed to the Pissarides Review. He is now an Assistant Professor of Management at the University of Sussex Business School.

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