Kingsoft denies employee died due to overwork

Beijing-based software company Kingsoft said that an employee who died in the office on Sept 4 had not been working overtime before his death.

The 25-year-old man spent the night in the office before he died.

The company didn't provide specific information, such as the man's name or age, but confirmed that he stayed in its offices on the night before he died.

The case caught the public's attention because on Aug 28, Kingsoft had posted on one of its Weibo accounts, a Twitter-like service, a photo of a man sleeping at his desk with a caption that read: "This man has been working overtime and stayed out of bed for a week. He sleeps at his desk if he is tired. This picture shows how much willpower it takes to be an outstanding programmer. "

The photo was later deleted after it attracted wide criticism from Internet users.

The company said that the man in the photo was not the employee that died.

"After swiping his card to clock out, the employee chose to spend the night in the company's building voluntarily. He died suddenly while he was resting," the company said in a statement published on its micro blog account on Sept 8.

"The police have confirmed that the employee died due to his own health conditions. His death had nothing to do with external factors," the statement said.

"His colleagues' testimony and the work attendance system show that he hadn't been working overtime continuously shortly before his death," the statement added.

The company also said that, although it doesn't feel responsible for the man's death, it will pay a compensation to his family to express its condolences.

It added that the man's family has accepted its conclusion that the death was not work-related and has accepted the compensation amount.

The company's statement was met with wide suspicion by netizens who are wondering why did the man choose to stay in the office for the night after clocking out.