Chinese tech giants apologize over sexist job ads

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Three of China’s leading tech companies have apologized after being accused of sexism in their job hiring procedures, following a report which suggested certain ads targeted men only, objectified women or had physical requirements for female candidates.

Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu all acknowledged the findings of the study, which also singled out telecoms giant Huawei for its failings on gender equality.

Alibaba told the BBC it would be stricter in implementing its “compliance with our policy [of]… equal opportunity regardless of gender.” The e-commerce conglomerate pointed to how women make up one third of its management as evidence of its “track record of not just hiring but promoting women in leadership positions.”

The report, by a New York-based NGO, said Alibaba tried to attract new staff by offering the opportunity to work alongside “Ali beauties” and “goddesses.”

Young women at a recruitment fair in Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province, April 14, 2018. /VCG Photo

One Alibaba ad, posted on Sina Weibo, said, “They are the goddesses in Alibaba employees’ hearts—smart and competent at work and charming and alluring in life. They are independent but not proud, sensitive but not melodramatic. They want to be your coworkers. Do you want to be theirs?”

Tencent was found to have used similar tactics, with one recruitment advert featuring a male employee saying the “very pretty” ladies in HR at the company caused a “primal impulse” that made him join up.

A separate advert by Tencent for the role of Sports Content Editor was closed to female candidates completely, with explicit requirements for “strong men who are able to work night shifts.”

Tencent told the BBC on Monday the ads “do not reflect our values,” adding “we are sorry they occurred and we will take swift action to ensure they do not happen again.”

Baidu was also called out on its job advertisements, with one position for a Film Program Manager open only to candidates with “strong logical reasoning ability, effective execution skills … men and manly women.”

The search engine and tech giant responded to the report by telling CNN, “We value the important work that our female employees do across the organization, and deeply regret the instances where our job postings did not align with Baidu's values.”

China has long had a proud tradition of women “holding up half the sky,” with great efforts in previous decades to establish gender equality. However, recent trends suggest that gender parity is slowly slipping, with fewer women of working ability in employment now than a decade ago.

A study by the World Economic Forum last year saw China slip down the rankings on gender pay parity for the ninth successive year, leaving it 100th out of 144 countries. Just 10 years before, China was ranked 57th.

A survey conducted last year by job search website www.51job.com found that since the introduction of the two-child policy, 75 percent of companies asked were more reluctant to hire women over concerns about maternity leave.