A comment by Dong Mingzhu, chairwoman of the state-owned Gree Electric Appliances, recently sparked Internet controversy in China. She labeled those who studied abroad as “spy” suspects.
Dong, 70, said at the company’s shareholders meeting on April 22 that she would only hire talents who graduated from local universities, as spies could be among those who came back from the West. She said it’s difficult to check who is and is not a spy.
Dong stressed that Gree is a global leader in manufacturing refrigerant compressors with many patents and that she is the incumbent chairperson of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) ‘s committee for testing and rating refrigerant compressors.
State media criticized Dong for stereotyping and discriminating against the returnees and overseas Chinese students.
The Shanghai-based Xinmin Evening News said Gree should blame itself for failing to attract and retain talents with international experience. The Beijing News said Dong’s “spy” speculation lacks common sense and hurts Gree’s corporate image. The Beijing Business Today said Dong’s decision to reject all returnees was wrong and dangerous.
Hu Xijin, former editor-in-chief of the Global Times, said Dong should apologize to the public, especially to the returnees.
“How to run Gree is the right of Dong Mingzhu and the company’s management team, but altogether rejecting a group of people is against the Labor Law,” Hu said. “Such a comment at the shareholders’ meeting has a negative impact on society and is inconsistent with the country’s opening-up policy.”
He said Dong’s comment had exceeded the scope of the company’s independent operation and led to negative public opinion.
“Now, a large community of ‘returnees’ is feeling rejected and hurt. I believe that Dong did not intend this. A responsible company and its leaders should express regret to the harmed group,” he said.
Hu said that as the external environment has become more complicated this year than in the past, it’s good that Chinese people increase their national security awareness. However, he said rejecting all returnees is an overreaction, not China’s policy.
Zhou Dawei, a distinguished fellow at the Legal Research Institute at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), who studied in the United States, said “returnees” could file a legal case against Dong and Gree.
“Dong labeled millions of overseas returnees in mainland China as ‘spy’ suspects. The word ‘spy’ itself is a severe criminal charge,” Zhou said. “Her remarks directly constituted blatant identity discrimination. They are not only wrong but also illegal.”
He said, as an influential public figure, Dong should beware of what she says. He said Gree’s recruitment policy might have violated Articles 25 and 26 of China’s Employment Promotion Law, which ensures the fair treatment of all workers.
On Wednesday, the Shanxi Overseas Returnee Chamber of Commerce released a statement urging Dong to apologize and Gree Electric to effectively rectify the discriminatory clauses in its talent recruitment policy.
“Dong Mingzhu labeled the entire returnee group as ‘spy’ suspects. This move lacks data support and exposes prejudice against overseas students,” the chamber said, adding that Dong should eliminate prejudice and create an inclusive environment for all talents.
Comparison to Boxer Rebellion
“Gree Electric failed to diversify into the smartphone and auto businesses. Now, Dong is spouting this kind of Boxer-style anti-intellectual populist nonsense, trying to cater to some populists,” a Guangdong-based netizen said. “Her comment offended not only the returnees but also people with an international vision and a scientific spirit. These people are those who have real purchasing power.”
From 1899 to 1901, the Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists, known as “Boxers,” won the support of Empress Dowager Cixi. An imperial decree was a de facto declaration of war on foreign powers. The xenophobic group’s members believed that they were invincible due to certain supernatural powers.
After Boxers killed dozens of foreign missionaries and countless Chinese Christians, eight nations led by Britain formed the Siege of the International Legations, which sent troops to rescue the trapped foreigners in Beijing and defeated Qing’s troops. The Qing government collapsed in 1911.
Chinese nationalism
Some pundits pointed out that Gree had lost commercial secrets due to the wrongdoings of “returnees.”
- In 2023, an engineer from Gree Research Institute with a master’s degree from an overseas university leaked core compressor technology to a foreign company. The technology involved key areas such as energy efficiency improvement, noise control and material innovation, causing Gree to lose about US$1.2 billion in orders in the Southeast Asian market. Its customers turned to Japanese companies Daikin and Mitsubishi.
- In 2020, a returnee surnamed Wang, who worked for Gree’s subsidiary Intelligent Equipment Company, was accused of stealing the technology of computer numerical control (CNC) machine tools and attempting to sell it overseas. He was later investigated and dealt with by the police.
- In 2023, a former employee of Gree’s Thermodynamics R&D Center with an overseas scientific research background leaked the core parameters of a heat conduction system, causing Gree to lose 230 million yuan (US$31.6 million) in orders in the European market.
An Anhui-based writer says China’s national security authorities uncovered 123 espionage cases in 2024, 15% involving returnees. Based on these figures, the writer says Dong’s complete rejection of returnees is justified.
Many netizens also supported Dong’s comments. They said many wealthy kids studied overseas but were not necessarily outstanding.
Figures show that returnees still have value in China’s job market.
On April 11, China’s Ministry of Education published a report saying that more than 800,000 overseas Chinese students returned to China last year, up 58% from the level in 2019. Last year, 12.22 million students graduated from local universities and high schools. About 43% of overseas students took computer science and engineering subjects.
In February, Zhaopin.com, a Chinese job-hunting website, published a survey report stating that the number of overseas students who returned to China in 2024 grew by 20%. However, the report did not provide the exact number.
It said four in five returnees held master’s degrees, and the top ten subjects were business management, finance, economics, marketing, law, accounting, human resources, international business, education and computer science.
It said many returnees wanted to join Chinese internet giants, while many entered the process manufacturing, instrument manufacturing, exports and imports, new energy, and environmental protection industries. The average monthly salary of returnees has grown for the sixth year to 15,440 yuan in 2024, compared with 11,739 yuan in 2019.
The average monthly salary of domestic university graduates is about 6,000 yuan, according to the Ministry of Education.
