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Chinese college asks student asked to take off trousers to prove she's on period for Sick Leave
The incident was recorded on video, which circulated widely on Chinese social media before being taken down. In the clip, a young woman is heard asking a staff member: 'Does every menstruating girl have to take off their trousers and show you before they can get a sick note?' read more
A college student was asked by her institute to remove her trousers so they could verify she is menstruating before granting her sick leave. Image courtesy: Pixabay
A college in the Chinese capital is facing widespread criticism and online outrage after a video emerged showing a student allegedly being asked to prove she was menstruating in order to receive sick leave.
The incident reportedly took place at the Gengdan Institute of Beijing University of Technology. In the video, which circulated widely on Chinese social media before being taken down, a young woman is heard asking a staff member: 'Does every menstruating girl have to take off their trousers and show you before they can get a sick note?'
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'Basically yes,' the woman responds, according to a BBC report. 'This is a school rule.'
Chinese state and local media identified the location as the school's on-campus clinic. The Gengdan Institute issued a statement on May 16 defending the staff member's actions and stating that 'protocol was followed.' The college also warned that it reserves the right to take legal action against those who 'maliciously spread untrue videos.'
However, the statement and the video have since been removed from most platforms. Despite this, screenshots and clips continue to circulate online, fueling intense backlash and accusations of privacy violations.
A user claiming to be the student said her Douyin account, China's version of TikTok, was suspended for 30 days for 'pornographic content' after she uploaded the video.
In the video, the staff member declined to provide written proof of the regulation and eventually advised the student to seek help at a hospital instead.
Local outlet Dute News quoted a Gengdan staff member saying the rule may have been introduced to discourage students from faking menstrual pain to obtain sick leave. That explanation was met with skepticism and criticism online.
'If they're worried about students abusing the policy, why not just keep a record? It's not that complicated,' one user wrote on Weibo.
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Another user sarcastically suggested, 'Let's just take the sanitary pad out and paste it on the sick note.'
China National Radio, a state-affiliated outlet, also weighed in with an editorial criticising the policy. 'Menstruation is already an intimate topic for women,' it said. 'Rules like this will make students feel very uncomfortable, and even negatively impact students' psychological wellbeing.'
The Gengdan Institute now joins a growing list of Chinese universities under fire for overly strict or intrusive regulations. Last year, several schools were criticized for banning privacy curtains on dormitory beds, citing fire hazards. Others issued restrictive travel guidelines during the May Day holiday, barring solo or road trips, prompting criticism of administrative overreach into students' personal lives.
On Xiaohongshu, a Chinese social platform, a user claiming to be a Gengdan student said the clinic 'deserves all the criticism it's getting' and alleged that similar incidents had occurred in the past without any corrective action.
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'I'm glad it made the trending topics this time,' the user wrote. 'People didn't stay silent.'
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