This tradition (?) sounds like a joke to me! 
In olden time, during the year-end employee dinner, if the boss plans to fire an employee, he will turn and point the chicken head (of the whole-chicken dish) toward that person. Thus the name, merciless chicken !!! If he doesn’t want to fire anyone, he would point the chicken head toward himself.
A question immediately came to my mind - what if he wants to fire more than one employee, which way will the chicken head point ?
無情 = merciless, 雞 = chicken => 無情雞 = merciless chicken
( heard this in KTSF Cantonese news recently )
Filed under: jokes | Tagged: boss, chicken dish, chicken head, Chinese, Chinese joke, Chinese tradition, company dinner, employee, employee dinner, joke, merciless, merciless chicken, tradition
I heard the practice was the boss would use his chopsticks to pick up a piece of chicken, and place it in the bowl of the employee(s) who is (or are) about to be fired.