Four current and former officials at a middle school in Taiyuan, Shanxi province, have been disciplined for their involvement in a "ghost-payroll" case, in which an employee continued to receive wages despite not showing up for work for years, according to the city's joint investigation team.

The case, released on May 8, came after a staff member, surnamed Liu, publicly reported that he had received pay without working, drawing wide social attention and prompting Taiyuan authorities to launch an immediate joint investigation, CCTV News reported.

According to the investigation team, Liu was originally an accountant and manager at the Shanxi Trade School's canteen. In November 2019, with approval from the former employer and Taiyuan's education and human resources bureaus, Liu was transferred to work at Taiyuan No 29 Middle School. The transfer was found to comply with relevant regulations.

But just over a month into the new job, in January 2020, Liu stopped showing up at work, citing dissatisfaction with his position, and demanded to be sent back to his former workplace.

Despite repeated calls from the school, Liu refused to work.

The school began withholding Liu's annual appraisal bonus and performance-based incentives starting in 2022, but continued to pay the basic salary, the investigation found.

The team concluded that the school had failed in its management duties by allowing Liu to remain absent from work without justification for a prolonged period, resulting in a ghost-payroll problem for which those responsible must be held accountable.

The school has now suspended all of Liu's wages, launched procedures to terminate employment, and is recovering the salary Liu had already received in accordance with the law.

The Taiyuan Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision has imposed serious intra-Party warnings on the school's then-principal, surnamed Li, another official, surnamed Zhai, the current Party committee secretary, surnamed Zhou, and the current principal, surnamed Chai, citing relevant Party regulations.