A sexual assault scandal has rocked Alibaba and led to departures at the Chinese e-commerce giant.
The company on Monday said it has fired an employee after he was accused of sexually assaulting a woman who also works at Alibaba ( BABA). The man confessed to actions that Alibaba deemed «in serious violation of company policy,» according to a memo sent by Alibaba Group chairman and CEO Daniel Zhang to employees. Two senior employees also resigned after they «failed to prioritize employee protection,» according to Zhang’s memo. «Alibaba Group has a zero-tolerance policy against sexual misconduct, and ensuring a safe workplace for all our employees is Alibaba’s top priority,» a company spokesperson said in a statement to CNN Business. The allegations — which were widely circulated on Chinese social media over the weekend — have rocked Alibaba at a time when it and other Chinese tech companies are already facing incredible scrutiny from Chinese regulators over their business. The claims triggered public outcry as many criticized the company for its handling of the situation. The controversy started after a post — allegedly written by the victim, who did not identify herself, and published on an internal Alibaba website — circulated on the Chinese social media website Weibo. According to screenshots of the 8,000-word account, the woman claimed she was assaulted by her supervisor during a business trip to Jinan, a city in eastern China, while she says she was drunk. «The male leader even entered my hotel room four times that night with condom and assaulted me!!!! When I typed the lines above, I couldn’t control myself, and I broke into tears. I never thought that I would have such an experience,» she wrote. «When I think about it now, it just feels like a nightmare, one that makes you terrified, scared, helpless, helpless nightmare!» CNN Business cannot confirm the authenticity of the post.
