Superstition continues to play a significant role in Chinese culture, even influencing business practices. Companies often make decisions based on superstitions, such as preferring lucky numbers, avoiding specific colors or dates, or incorporating feng shui into their strategies.
Recently, Sanxing Transportation, a company in Guangdong Province, southern China, has drawn attention for its unusual hiring policy rooted in superstition. As reported by the South China Morning Post, the firm has gone viral on Chinese social media for explicitly prohibiting job applicants born in the Year of the Dog. The company justifies this policy by citing the belief that those born under the dog zodiac sign could bring bad luck to the firm’s head, who was born in the Year of the Dragon. In Chinese astrology, the dragon and dog are in conflict within the 12-year zodiac cycle.
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Sanxing Transportation’s job posting for a clerk position, with a monthly salary ranging from 3,000 to 4,000 yuan (approximately ₹35,140 to ₹46,853), explicitly states that individuals born under the dog sign need not apply. This reflects the company’s strong reliance on zodiac-related superstitions in its hiring process.
According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), on August 2, a staff member told Hubei Television that the company banned certain applicants because their boss was a “dragon”, and “dragons and dogs do not get along well.”
They mentioned that even less qualified candidates would be considered “as long as their zodiac sign is not the dog.” In Chinese astrology, each zodiac sign is linked to an “earthly branch” and associated with one of the “five phases”: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.
It is believed that the dragon corresponds to the water element, while the dog is associated with the fire element. As a result, if a dragon and a dog work together, they are likely to experience frequent disagreements. Superstitious beliefs also portray those born under the dog sign as vindictive and capable of bringing bad luck to the careers of those born under the dragon sign. Interestingly, when it comes to romantic relationships, the dynamic is reversed. It is thought that individuals born in the Year of the Dog would suffer more if they dated someone with the dragon zodiac sign, as dragons are considered less loyal and tolerant. These beliefs are also intertwined with feng shui principles, suggesting that dog and dragon zodiac individuals working together could use lucky charms in the workplace to promote harmony.
