Job site admits negligence after man found dead

A Chinese job site admitted negligence on Thursday in the vetting of potential employers after a college graduate, who was reportedly hired by a pyramid scheme through the site, was confirmed dead.

Zhipin. com, a Chinese job recruitment site, told the Global Times on Thursday that “it is our fault that we failed to update our rules. The incident taught us a painful lesson. We have been vetting all employers on our platform before posting job openings starting August 3.”

Zhipin. com’s statement comes after the Tianjin police confirmed that Li Wenxing had found dead in a puddle in Jinghai district on July 14, and they suspect Li was lured into a pyramid scheme before he died.

The 23- year- old graduate of Northeastern University sent his CV to a fake company on zhipin. com on May 15, which only interviewed Li by phone and required him to report to the company on May 20, education technology media JMDedu reported on Wednesday.

Police said Li had drowned to death, but whether he was killed remained under investigation as of press time.

Li’s family in East China’s Shandong Province said that Li sounded different on WeChat since he joined the company in Tianjin and had asked for money several times during the two months, The Beijing News reported. Li’s mother said Li’s last call was on July 8. She quoted him as saying, “Do not believe anyone who calls you for money,” and was found dead six days later.

Zhipin. com also said that they have strengthened auditing procedures of potential employers on the platform. It said that the site’s previous rules allowed a company to post a job opening without being audited.

A Global Times reporter learned on Thursday that zhipin. com requires employers to upload authentic ID information and their business operating license before allowing them to post job openings.