29-4-2024 (BEIJING) ByteDance, the parent company of the globally renowned video-sharing platform TikTok, has announced the dismissal of 61 employees found guilty of violating company policies and engaging in unlawful conduct. The disciplinary actions come as a result of an internal anti-corruption campaign, highlighting the company’s unwavering commitment to maintaining a transparent and accountable corporate environment.
According to reports from Pengpai News and Southern Metropolis Daily, ByteDance’s Corporate Discipline and Professional Ethics Committee issued an internal anti-corruption notice on Sunday, April 28th, detailing various instances of misconduct categorized into four major areas: criminal offenses, violations of integrity and honesty policies, conflicts of interest, and breaches of information security protocols.
Alarmingly, four individuals were implicated in alleged criminal activities, including the acceptance of bribes, abuse of professional authority for personal gain, and other illicit practices. Additionally, 17 employees were found to have engaged in unauthorized access, storage, or disclosure of confidential company information, as well as granting external parties access to internal systems containing sensitive data.
The notice further revealed that 32 employees had leveraged their professional positions to provide unauthorized assistance to external parties in exchange for personal benefits. These transgressions included submitting fraudulent expense claims, misusing company resources for personal transportation, and improperly obtaining housing subsidies.
Notably, the anti-corruption campaign uncovered instances where multiple employees resorted to purchasing fake invoices or soliciting invoices from taxi drivers to submit false expense claims, even in cases where the criteria for reimbursement, such as overtime work or client visits, were not met. The amounts involved ranged from thousands to tens of thousands of yuan, and ByteDance has demanded the immediate return of all ill-gotten gains.
One particularly egregious case involved a former employee who, for personal reasons, did not work from the company’s premises. This individual lent their employee access card to an external party, enabling them to gain unauthorized entry to the company’s facilities for 21 working days. During this period, the external party consumed meals at the company’s internal cafeteria on 14 occasions, resulting in the misappropriation of 490 yuan (approximately $94) worth of ByteDance’s assets.
