Khaberni - The case of the dismissal of an engineer in Eastern China has sparked widespread debate regarding the rights of employees and the limits of tolerance for health conditions in the workplace, after his company terminated his contract due to frequent long bathroom visits, despite his confirmation of suffering from "hemorrhoids".
According to the "South China Morning Post", the engineer "Li", who resides in Jiangsu province, was dismissed from his job after recording 14 long absences in the bathroom during April and May 2024, one of which lasted up to four continuous hours, which the company considered a serious disruption to work flow.
Employee "Li", who joined the company in 2010 and renewed his contract in 2014, filed a lawsuit against his employer, accusing it of unfair dismissal, and demanded compensation (about 45,000 US dollars). He presented in his defense medical documents, including hemorrhoids medication he purchased in May and June of the previous year, in addition to medical records proving he underwent surgery in January.
In response, the company presented surveillance camera recordings showing long and repeated absences inside the bathroom, confirming that the employment contract explicitly stipulates service termination if unjustified absences exceed three business days within a 180-day period, which it considered applicable to the employee's case. It also explained that it had obtained the approval of the labor union before making the dismissal decision.
After two rounds of litigation, the court intervened to mediate between the parties, and the case ended with an amicable settlement, taking into consideration Li's years of service and his conditions after losing his job, where the company agreed to pay compensation of about 4200 dollars.
While Chinese labor law stipulates the right of employees to be provided with appropriate health conditions, courts often balance this right with the right of companies to maintain discipline and productivity, reopening the debate on how to handle medical conditions in the workplace.
