Coronavirus: China’s ‘rice bowls’ cracking as big home appliance maker speeds up job cuts
- Hisense Group, one of China’s largest appliance manufacturers, is struggling amid the coronavirus and says it will let go ‘underperforming workers’
- The company’s troubles are the latest anecdote of stress in China’s job market, where unemployment hit a record high in February
China’s unemployment situation continues to worsen as the coronavirus outbreak takes a toll on consumer demand both at home and abroad, with one of the country’s largest home appliance makers saying it is struggling to carry the “rice bowls” of tens of thousands of employees.
Hisense Group, a Shandong-based manufacturer of television sets and other appliances, issued a statement on Sunday announcing that the virus was affecting business and it was speeding up its decision to let go “underperforming workers”.
“Home appliance markets have seen a large decline in both China and abroad because of the global pandemic,” the company said. “Hisense is particularly challenged because its overseas revenue accounts for 40 per cent of its total.
“Like many Chinese firms, we are at a key moment in weathering the crisis and are struggling to keep the rice bowls of tens of thousands excellent workers.”
The statement was issued in a response to rumours that the company plans to cut 10,000 jobs, or 12.5 per cent of its workforce.
