Workers work on the assembly line at a factory of vehicle manufacturer BYD Auto in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Feb. 25, 2020.(Photo: Xinhua)

The cause of the sudden death of an employee at BYD's Xi'an plant is being investigated by police, although there have been no criminal charges, the leading Chinese electric vehicle maker told the Global Times on Thursday. 

The employee, 36, was found dead in a rented home on November 5. The case quickly topped search trends on China's social media Sina Weibo on Wednesday. Local police said no criminal leads were being pursued. 

The employee's family said they believe that his sudden death was related to high-intensity overtime work. The employee's work record shows that he worked 26 days in October and about 12 hours a day, coupled with frequent night shifts. 

However, the exact cause of his death remains unclear without an autopsy being completed.

"We deeply mourn the deceased and the cause of the employee's death is subject to further investigation. At present, we are actively communicating with the employee's family to properly handle the issue," the BYD told the Global Times on Thursday.

According to the paper.com, after consultation, BYD agreed to pay the employee's family a one-time sum of 200,000 yuan ($31,366). 

BYD's auto sales have grown rapidly in 2021. From January to October, the company's auto sales reached 542,700 units, up 71.35 percent year-on-year, of which 418,600 are electric vehicles, an increase of 212.03 percent.

The Supreme People's Court of China and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security in August jointly released a guideline, illustrating 10 types of overtime work, stipulating that the excessive "996" overtime work policy was illegal, where employees are encouraged to work from 9 am to 9 pm, and six days a week. 

Starting earlier this year, a number of China's internet platforms including Tencent and ByteDance have announced the cancellation of the "996" work schedule, with employees required to submit applications for overtime work after 7:00 pm.

Global Times