Recently, a man posted a video claiming that there were significant absences during office hours at the Yanping Town Government in Yunyang County, Chongqing, sparking discussion.
On July 22, a netizen from Chongqing posted a video on social media stating that around 9 a.m. on a workday, he went to the office of the Yunyang County Yanping Town Government and found 8 computers in the lobby, with 7 of them empty. He mentioned, “I visited several offices, and there was only one person in each.” Then, around ten o’clock, “another person arrived, and shortly after, another one came.”
The netizen also mentioned that this town government located in a rural area usually has few people visiting on weekdays, with more people present only during market days. However, even on such days, the staff at the town government were relatively scarce.
The news attracted attention online. Reporters called the local town government for clarification, and the staff mentioned that according to regulations, office hours start at 8:30 a.m., and they are currently investigating the matter, making it inconvenient to provide a response to reporters at the moment.
On July 23, the Yunyang County joint investigation team issued a bulletin stating that there are a total of 5 staff members in the comprehensive service hall of Yanping Town in Yunyang County. One person reported for duty at 8:20 a.m. that day, one was on a day off, and the remaining three were late and are under accountability procedures.
Around 1:30 p.m. that day, when reporters from DaWan News contacted Yanping Town Government again, a staff member mentioned that Mr. Liu (the netizen who posted the video) arrived at the town’s service hall around 8:50 a.m. on July 22 to handle business. The staff had already reported for duty before this because there were relatively few villagers conducting business. Some staff went to the villages to calculate incomes for poverty alleviation households, and others were working in different departments. The statements from the investigation team and the town government staff were conflicting.
However, according to feedback from netizens nationwide, unauthorized absence, leaving the post, and tardiness among government staff are common occurrences. For example, a netizen from Jiangsu said, “I have a relative working in the town’s land bureau, only working half a day a week. The salary is not high, but there is a job vacancy.”
A netizen from Jiangxi mentioned, “Many town hospitals have staff playing mahjong during office hours.”
A netizen from Guangdong shared, “When I went to the neighborhood office to handle affairs, the elderly said to return after 10 a.m. in the morning and after 3:30 p.m. in the afternoon.”
A netizen from Sichuan said, “Sometimes there is only one person, and when you ask for someone, they say they are in a meeting and will be back soon, but they never return even by the end of the workday.”
A netizen from Chongqing added, “It’s the same here, couldn’t find anyone at 9 a.m. when handling affairs, and even if someone is spotted, they have to clean first. The same goes for the afternoon, it’s after 3:30, not even on weekends.”
A netizen from Zhejiang commented, “It’s all the same, one person working, but ten people receiving high salaries.”
Some even remarked, “It’s a nationwide secret that everyone knows, and you’ve just uncovered it.” “Having even one person actually working during office hours would be nice.”