Apple’s iPhone 7 withstood being cut by a razor blade and bent in a torture test performed by a techie last week. However, despite the relatively good quality of the flagship, a Chinese company in Henan Province frowns on employees buying the device.
On Sunday, Sept. 18, the company issued a policy that prohibited workers from buying the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. Those who violate the policy would be forced to resign, reported Shanghaiist.
Rather than spend their money on the expensive device, the company suggested for employees to instead spend the money in caring for their parents’ health, children’s growth and life’s other pleasures.
The policy, which has become viral on Weibo, also encourages employees to instead patronize products made in China. On the morning of Sept. 21, the policy was the 7th most popular topic in China’s biggest microblogging site, with mixed responses to the policy.
Other Chinese companies had also banned the iPhone in the past. Zhejiang-based Bina Technology issued a similar policy in response to the South China Sea ruling. In July, thousands of Chinese who considered themselves patriots held a protest outside a fake Apple store in Jiangsu Province.
The company intentionally released the policy on Sept. 18 to mark the 85th anniversary of the Manchurian incident. On the same date in 1931, a staged explosion in Mukden City, now Shenyang, gave Japan the excuse to invade northeast China. To this day, many Chinese still have a mistrust of foreigners, including foreign-made products.