Internet giant NetEase denies allegations of programmer suicide caused by HR worker threats

Chinese internet giant NetEase on Thursday denied allegations that a programmer's suicide was caused by threats from a human resources worker over a coding bug.

In an internal circular obtained by media, the company said that the programmer had told a worker from the HR department two days before his death that he had not slept well for weeks and may have been depressed. The HR worker told him to rest and offered him support, along with the programmer's team leader and coworkers.

The programmer shared a prescription the next day, saying he had begun taking medication.

NetEase said that the programmer had reported the bug, which came from an open source written by a third party, a week before his death, and that it was evaluated as a minor one, with plans to fix it. The programmer's supervisor and coworkers talked to him multiple times, saying that minor bugs happen all the time and he would not be punished for it.

NetEase said it had found no evidence of the HR worker's threat, but promised to punish them if such evidence were found in further investigations. The company added that it would enhance its efforts in providing employees with free mental consultation and education.