20 employees quit TikTok after executive opposes maternity leave

The head of e-commerce at TikTok Europe for ByteDance (TikTok’s parent company), Joshua Ma recently told TikTok London’s staff that as a 'capitalist', he ‘didn’t believe’ companies should offer their employees paid maternity leave.

As per Financial Times, 20 employees of TikTok Shop (TikTok’s e-commerce company) have quit their jobs following this statement from the executive and TikTok’s strenuous work conditions.

In a statement to New York Post, a TikTok spokesperson said, “Tiktok has a clear maternity leave policy in the UK. The company also offers nine weeks with statutory maternity pay and an additional 13 weeks of unpaid leave.'

A former London-based TikTok Shop team leader told Financial Times that the culture at TikTok is very toxic and relationships there are built on fear, not co-operation. 'They don’t care about burnout because it is such a big company, they can just replace you. They coast on the TikTok brand,' he said.

Workers told Financial Times that they were expected to work over 12 hours each day, with their day stating very early morning to accommodate to China’s time zone.

On June 8, a company-wide email told employees that Ma will take some time off and step back from his current role.

The TikTok spokesperson also told Post: “We are investigating alleged statements and actions to determine whether there has been a breach of company policies.”