The 996 work system, working from 9 am to 9 pm for 6 days a week, has been a culture in China, especially in technology companies. Tech giants such as Jack Ma also support it and many see the system as making China progress. But now the Chinese government is taking decisive steps.
The country's courts condemned the forced labor system. "Recently, extreme overtime work in some industries has attracted widespread attention," China's Supreme Court said.
According to them, employees have the right to rest or vacation and comply with the work system regulated by the state is the obligation of the company. They gave examples of several companies that were deemed to have violated the 996 system.
"It is a serious violation of the law to extend the upper limit of working hours and shall be deemed invalid," the court said in a statement.
Many bosses supported the system, including Jack Ma. "Personally, I believe it's a blessing to be able to work 996 because many companies and individuals who want to work 996 don't get that opportunity," said Jack Ma some time ago.
"Because of this '996' or '997', China was able to achieve various achievements and why the world admires China and its achievements in the last 40 years. And this is why we have the Shenzhou V and Shenzhou VI space missions. All of this builds our confidence for the future ahead," said Jack Ma on another occasion.
"I'm not defending '996'. I salute all the fighters (those who work hard). Everyone has the right to choose their way of life. If you prefer to have a more relaxed job and you don't want to exert 'superhuman effort', That's okay too," he added.
Now, the Chinese government seems to be taking firm action against companies that implement the 996 work system. This is considered one of the raids carried out by the government under President Xi Jinping's command to limit the space for technology companies and their bosses.
"There is nothing wrong with encouraging hard work, but it should not be an excuse for employers to evade their legal responsibilities," the court said.
Moreover, there have been several cases where employees died after exhaustion with the 996 work system. Last January, e-commerce giant Pinduoduo came under fire after an employee was reported to have died suddenly due to overwork.
"If only bosses could feel what the people who work for them feel, the 996 work system would not exist. The capitalists should keep their mouths shut," protested a netizen about the work system.
