Century21 Realtor in China, dead from overworking says family

(China) Zhou Yu, 28, a Jiangsu Province native and Century21 branch manager was found dead in his apartment earlier this week. Family members claim Yu’s death was caused by overwork and fatigue, although no determination has been made yet as to the official cause of death.

Relatives tell the Shanghai Daily that the Realtor often worked until midnight and rarely kept a healthy routine, while Li, a company spokesman says, “The family, who wants more compensation, are overreacting” and denied Zhou’s death was triggered by overwork. “We have never asked our employees to work overtime, but we cannot rule out the possibility that people will voluntarily stay late.” “We always regard employees as our most important resource.”

Realtors are known to work seven day work weeks, and days that typically  extend  late into the night, and this unhealthy lifestyle can take its toll coupled with stress and family life. This problem extends around the world and whether it’s a down or up market, this problem may lie solely on the shoulders of the agent to manage themselves as tightly as they manage their business, however, it stands to reason that sales managers and senior executives need to recognize possible warning signs and take action as well as raise awareness within their franchises.

In the U.S., Realtors are more often self-employed contractors and it is difficult for Broker operators to mandate or regulate sales agent work routines which are often dictated by consumer demand rather than the Broker themselves.