While France and Spain are fighting to reduce working hours, China is doing its own thing. Working from 9 in the morning to 9 at night, six days a week, sixty hours. Overwork, of course, maybe even bordering on exploitation, and now in some job offers in the United States it is being implemented, or at least attempted.
The famous 996 work schedule, which was heavily criticized and even declared illegal, is finding a new home in ultra competitive sectors such as technology and artificial intelligence. And the worst part is that it is being disguised as “passion” and “commitment”, because having passion and commitment for your family, your home or even your own dreams does not seem to count.
What is the 996 work schedule
Working from 9:00 to 21:00, six days a week, no mystery and no anesthesia. More than 72 working hours a week, far more than what is considered healthy, sustainable or even legal. In China it became normalized during the tech boom under the idea that if you did not give your life to work, you did not deserve success, but people literally gave their lives.
From China to the United States
Now, after courts in China declared this practice illegal, in the US it is starting to be offered as something normal. Young startups, AI companies or high pressure environments believe that your availability to work with them must be total, otherwise the job is not for you. Do not even think about wanting a life.
Work or slavery?
Nobody is excited about working 70 hours a week. Yet this is what some job offers sell as a virtue. Overwork, and exploitation, are no longer hidden, and this is where the very thin line between ambition and exploitation starts to disappear.
Work life balance
A journalist from the Dutch newspaper Het Parool said that in a job interview, when asked about work life balance, she replied that her private life was also important. Spoiler: she was not hired because she “did not fit”. Are we really giving our lives to companies?
Saying “no” leaves you out
No one officially forces you to work 996, but if you are not willing to do it, you do not pass the filter. And we are not in a moment where we can freely choose what kind of job we want if we are in need. So we are allowing system pressure to go above the biological needs of every human being, and whoever needs the job will clearly allow themselves to be exploited.
The “all or nothing” culture
This mentality is concentrated in places where extreme sacrifice is glorified and “giving 200 percent” is not a metaphor but a requirement. That does not mean it is right. We are human beings, not machines.
Sometimes we forget that people suffer from chronic exhaustion and that this kind of work schedule can lead to physical and mental collapse and even death from overwork. The race for innovation should not destroy the lives of workers.
On top of that, accepting these changes will turn them into the norm, and we cannot turn exploitation into a norm.
It is not normal, but it is already visible enough for unions to start worrying. It is a legal, ethical and above all human debate. We should not normalize that life is meant to be lived at our workplace.