In Yunnan’s Honghe County, a female civil servant recently took to social media to confess that her husband is a deputy head of a department, and she is currently 20 weeks pregnant. During the early stages of her pregnancy, she took a two-month leave, and upon returning to work, she found that most of her responsibilities had been assigned to contract workers by her superiors. She admitted to slacking off at home for a period of time without going to the office, and now with two new civil servants recruited in the department, she feared losing her job if she continued to neglect her duties.
The female civil servant disclosed that after transferring to work at the Culture and Tourism Bureau of a small county last year, she felt that her workload was light and her superiors were understanding. She also mentioned the challenges she faced due to her physical condition not allowing her to climb multiple flights of stairs in the office building daily, prompting her to rent a hotel next to the office and pay for commuting expenses.
Her post quickly gained attention online, with many netizens questioning whether her behavior constituted abuse of sick leave. Some speculated on potential favoritism due to her husband’s position, while others criticized her for passing off her work to contract workers instead of fulfilling her responsibilities.
The incident sparked a discussion on social media about privilege and accountability within the system. Many expressed sympathy for the contract workers who bear additional workload with minimal pay, highlighting the prevalence of corruption and entitlement in society.
Some online users even revealed the woman’s personal information and filed a report to her workplace, leading to internal investigations. While some anticipated repercussions for the woman and her husband, others proposed that her claims might be fabricated.
Following the public scrutiny, the Culture and Tourism Bureau of Honghe County released a statement through local media, confirming that they were aware of the situation and taking necessary actions. The female employee has returned to work, and the bureau denied any claims of assigning her duties to contract workers, emphasizing their collaborative work environment with all team members pulling their weight.
Regarding the woman’s statement about her husband’s position, the bureau refrained from making any judgments and assured ongoing verification of the situation. Subsequently, the woman acknowledged her wrongdoing in a reply on the platform, apologizing for her actions and clarifying that her husband was not in an official position within the system. The internet user’s account has since been deactivated.
On July 9th, the topic “Pregnant Woman Slacks Off at Work While Husband Holds Deputy Position” reached over 100 million views and generated 12,000 discussions on Weibo, ranking fourth on the trending list.