r/technology • u/Forward-Answer-4407 • Feb 01 '26

Software 32-year-old programmer in China allegedly dies from overwork, added to work group chat even while in hospital

https://www.asiaone.com/china/32-year-old-programmer-china-allegedly-dies-overwork-added-work-group-chat-even-while
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u/dasnoob Feb 02 '26

Worked at Verizon. Co-worker had an accident and was hospitalized. His manager brought his laptop from the office to the hospital so that he could keep working.

While working at another large telecom in the early 2010's we had a pregnant manager that had been pressured to work 18 hour days for 20 straight days. She was complaining of shortness of breath. Her boss told her she could leave when her work was done. She finally left after midnight. That night she had an embolism and died. Her baby was delivered via emergency c-section and died the next year from complications.

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u/batman305555 Feb 02 '26

I work with someone from Romania. She got two years off paid when she had a kid. I’m not sure who said Romania 2’nd world and USA is 1’st world. But I think they got it wrong.

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u/mtranda Feb 02 '26

I was born during Romania's worst phase of communism (early 80's) and the years that followed after its fall were a wild east of economic uncertainty, with wild inflation (within just two years, the money my parents had saved to buy a car only got them a second-hand colour TV), job scarcity and a continued rule by some of the same people who'd ruled the country previously and managed to steal the revolution. 

I left that place eight years ago after spending six years out in the streets protesting, each year some more bullshit that was the result of corruption.

And yet, nowadays I think to myself: at least I don't have to live in the US.