A netizen uploaded on social media today a picture of an elderly man who lost his balance and collapsed in a Fairwood Fast Food cafe. He was in the midst of having his breakfast when he saw the old man sustained severe bleeding on his head. He immediately called the police while two other customers who were at the cafe offered their assistance to provide care for the injured man.

Wlderly man who lost his balance and collapsed in a Fairwood Fast Food cafe this morning. Picture credit : Salamandra Jones

Police then instructed him to stay on until the ambulance arrived. After submitting his personal particulars as a witness, he was allowed to rush to work.

While he was stranded at the cafe, he sent pictures of the incident via Whatsapp to his superior to pre-empt him as he knew he would be late for work. To his surprise, his superior responded non-empathetically by saying that the cafe staff should have called the police and not him. The superior told him that he would still be penalised for being late at work.

Lacking empathy doesn’t just hurt company culture, and it’s definitely about more than “just feelings. Empathy – understanding the feelings, thoughts, and attitudes of others – is the key prerequisite and most important character for a business to succeed.

During Typhoon Mangkhut last year, many employees going to work were caught up in long queues as public transport was crippled. Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Carrie Lam responded to Hong Kongers that government does not have the power to interfere with businesses and they can only plead to employers to have more compassion and empathy. The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions slammed Lam for not announcing an official day off for workers as it was evident that the Government is pro-employers. Laws allowing employees to make alternative arrangements for work should be drafted and enacted by Government during times of emergency.

This photo was taken on Sept 17, 2018 when commuters rushing for work thronged Tai Wai MTR station a day after Typhoon Mangkhut.

Unfortunately for now, corporate greed seems to have overshadowed compassion and plight of employees in a capitalistic city like Hong Kong.

A study recently published in the Academy of Management Journal suggests that businesses need to strike a balance between a lighthearted and fun workplace and one that is compassionate and caring. While the researchers looked specifically at the life of firefighters and the culture inside fire stations, the study’s authors believe their findings are also relevant to less male-dominated workplaces.

The study found two types of workplace cultures inside fire stations: joviality and companionate love. A jovial workplace is one where employees can have fun and take a joke, as well as participate in pranks and practical jokes. Conversely, a workplace of companionate love is one in which compassion, affection and caring in times of need are deeply important to its culture. The researchers said they were surprised to find that this type of culture permeates fire stations, considering they are typically filled with men.

“This seeming paradox – the presence of a strong culture of companionate love … illustrates the importance of adopting a more nuanced, contextualized view of masculine organizational culture,” the study’s authors wrote.

The study found that the best workplaces strike a balance between these two types of cultures. “The positive aspects of a culture of joviality and a culture of companionate love can work together to temper one another and allow individuals to flourish,” the study’s authors wrote.

We think that companies in Hong Kong have a lot to learn from firefighters to build a strong culture of companionate love.