Calling White Guys

"White Guy Window Dressing" or "The Token White Guy Gig" or "Face Job"... whatever you call it, it's curiously offensive on many levels, and in China, it's a growing trend.

HuffPost reports: 

These are terms used to describe a recently established practice employed by Chinese firms, who are willing to pay high prices for fair-skinned expatriates to act as faux employees and white-collar business partners -- all in an effort to impress other area businesses.

According to a blitz of news reports, the practice works as a complex, if bogus, promotional tool. To the Chinese public, the number of foreigners a company has is believed to have a direct correlation to its level of prestige, money and authority -- which, in turn, increases their chances of securing additional business. In an increasingly globalized Chinese workforce, an office's "diversity," real or not, makes them seem more international.

The practice, sources say, is rooted in the Chinese concept of "face," or the positive public expression of one's identity. As such, the "Token White Guy Gigs" are usually secured by Caucasian expats, including actors and English teachers, all hungry for work. Once "hired," many of the expats say they aren't given much instruction other than to sit and appear as though they understand as little Chinese as possible. Yet if the opportunity for a public event such as a party arose, they were given the red-carpet treatment, including cocktails and police escorts.

Read on and Watch vid

News and Comment - No Job News