Ralph Jennings lived for seven years in Beijing and more than that in Taipei. He’s worked as a news editor with the state-owned China Daily, an advice columnist for the 21st Century weekly in Beijing and as a reporter for numerous international media outlets, including Reuters. He also taught writing courses in Beijing at the Communication University of China for several years. These jobs exposed Jennings to thousands of news interviewees, media colleagues, students and their friends. Then came the random people who shared seats on overnight train rides in China, approached the author in Beijing’s sprawling parks and, in one case, threw a glass bottle at him. They ranged from teenagers to retirees. All that is condensed into his helpful new book, 50 Useful Tips on China (Earnshaw Books). Jennings now covers the Chinese economy for the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong.

Why don’t hands get raised at meetings?

The person to whom the hand belongs might get shot down. Leaders of meetings tend to rank high. A question might offend those leaders by implying that the meeting didn’t cover all points in adequate detail. We’re talking about company staff meetings and professional conferences where senior people go on stage. Leaders prefer to lead without any hint of a challenge, part of an old social order that many Chinese people intuitively understand. And what if the point of someone’s question was covered at the meeting? Asking would admit to not absorbing details of the event, effectively reflecting badly on the person’s brain capacity rather than marking the person as a careful double-checker of information. To avoid offending a leader or embarrassing oneself, those with questions may just ask one another. Shortly after many an event, chatter levels rise quickly in the audiences as trusted colleagues or cohorts ask one another what the speakers meant. Common questions include: What do we do next? Do our jobs change? What’s the background of this new person joining our team?

Why are co-worker relations so tricky in China?

Employers too often give vague job descriptions. Everyone in an office might have the title “associate”, for example. Without clearer ideas about who exactly does what, co-workers invest a lot of time psyching out the bosses for clues – and for dibs on the easiest (off by 5.30 pm) and most rewarding (work travel) duties. Company heads prefer vague job descriptions to keep a high level of authority. More defined roles, especially if backed up by employee handbooks that are full of detailed rules, limit leaders’ flexibility in business. Clearer definitions offer employees clarity on their exact rights and obligations, which is good for them but possibly inconvenient for senior leaders who are rule-bound to respect those boundaries. As a result, co-workers vie for the best roles by getting onto the good sides of supervisors. That process can take many forms, including favours unrelated to work, but it usually means grasping quickly what bosses really want day to day and giving them exactly that, especially in a crisis situation.

Why do employees work overtime even when the work is done?

This practice reflects a psychology of accumulation: more is better. The same psychology explains the crush to study 10-plus hours a day and find ways to make money even when super-rich already. Not too many decades ago, China was unstable across multiple metrics, and people weren’t sure how long they could keep resources or find more. An employee who stays at work for two extra hours, even if just to fiddle around on their PC, has the look/feel of giving the company two more hours of time that should theoretically translate to positive income. Office heads who believe in accumulation psychology feel comforted by the extra hours and remember who’s working longest, often without measuring tangible outcomes of the time spent. Friendlier bosses buy dinners for their long-hour employees. With this kind of oversight, plus the free meals, it’s hard to walk off at 5.30 pm after an eight-hour shift even if work is done (and done well) and the labour laws say it’s OK to leave. To leave on time would offend the boss and cast the departed employee as one who doesn’t care about the company.

Why is it acceptable to copy without permission?

Copying is traditionally seen as an expression of respect for someone’s work. That means students can block copy passages from other scholars without attributing every one of them. It means going ahead and playing a famous song at a public event without seeking permission from the song’s creator. Over roughly the past 25 years, China has faced pressure from copyright-conscious foreign governments to adopt a Western-style system of intellectual property rights protections. Along came a suite of laws and courts. But copying persists. Commercial copying, say of a book or software package, saves a pile of resources compared to creating one’s own work – an obvious advantage in China’s cutthroat competition among businesses. A national spirit of beating other countries, especially in technology, can also drive copying without permission.

In a country where trains nearly always run on time, why is “chabuduo” (almost) so often considered good enough?

A lack of specificity anchors dealmaking, public relations and workplace relations, among other relationship chains, so the parties involved can keep a valuable degree of flexibility. Flexibility later protects the human relationships involved. If something goes wrong, both parties can say no details were final, then walk back and redo things without getting into a dispute over specifics. Deals may start with commitments to action rather than lists of actual actions to be taken. Government offices tell the mass media that projects cost “about 100 billion yuan” instead of disclosing an exact figure. Bosses give approximate orders to workplace subordinates. Humans, in all cases, hope to hold onto the margin between approximate and exact so they can keep harmony while making changes, such as raising a project cost to 150 billion yuan. Deals cover specifics after two parties build trust. A reporter with good government relations can get the exact project figure on request. A supervisor will give a detailed work request once sure there’s no need to change it or worry that employees will use it irresponsibly, such as by telling competitors.

Why is the customer not always so right in China?

Customers are small individuals, and sellers are usually companies with considerable resources. That difference creates a power divide between the two sides, and Chinese society, from the way in the past, assigns status based on accumulation. Lots of proprietors do try to help distressed customers, on principle as well as to keep people coming back. But during larger disputes, a store, restaurant or utility provider won’t hesitate to say no. They can bring out legal-looking paperwork that a customer might not have. They can ignore online complaints. And they can blame a distraught customer for product defects. The status-conscious society at large assumes that the larger company will win based on its inherent clout, even if a customer actually has a case. It’s debatable how effective government-run customer complaint hotlines and websites are in resolving disputes. That uncertainty reduces any fear of reprisal on the company’s side if it goes against a customer’s wishes. Best practice for customers: ask friends to recommend sellers before doing business.

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Even though companies do not officially enforce a 996 schedule, many employees are required to work longer hours and are not always compensated. Under official Chinese law, employees can work a maximum 44-hour workweek and any work beyond that requires extra pay for overtime. But this has not been well enforced.

Employees are often encouraged or required to put in unpaid hours to show their commitment to their jobs and loyalty to the company. In turn, the companies further entice employees to work this schedule by offering facilities such as nap rooms. 

While young people could simply switch jobs, the job market is tough. Together with the impact of Covid-19, companies have had to lay off employees and freeze new hires, leaving the remaining workers to shoulder a larger share of the workload. Moreover, many employees are attracted to these brutal job conditions due to higher salaries and increased economic opportunities. As Guilherme Campos, International Business Advisory Manager at Dezan Shira & Associates, comments, “As long as Chinese society and culture puts some emphasis on material goals that are incompatible with normal middle-class salaries and as long as the cost of living continues to rise, people will always force themselves to go the extra mile and overwork.”

Yet, the public anger shown by some netizens over the impact of these harsh schedules has increased. Earlier this year two employees at the e-commerce platform Pinduoduo died from mental and physical exhaustion and since then, along with similar cases, the government authorities have taken a firm stand.

Why was 996 ruled to be illegal?

No longer turning a blind eye to the increasing public anger against 996, on 26 August 2021, the Chinese government ruled these working hours to be illegal. The Supreme People’s Court wrote, “workers deserve rights for rest and vacation…and adhering to the national working hour system is the legal obligation.”

“The Chinese supreme court’s decision against the 996 work policy (as well as the government’s moves to protect gig workers) overwhelmingly targets technology companies, and are in response to public discontent and immense societal pressure. More policy actions can be expected as the government appears determined to regulate its sprawling private tech sector while pushing forward with the “common prosperity” movement,” Adam Livermore, Partner at Dezan Shira & Associates, explains. Moreover, with grievances rising among workers, the government also has to ensure that it can maintain domestic stability.

The move towards better labour protection also comes at a time when attitudes towards work are changing. In recent months, the term “lying flat” has become a new social media buzzword to describe Gen Z and Millennials in China. Preferring a more relaxed and flexible lifestyle, many young people do not want to overwork. Therefore, to increase China’s young people’s work ethic, the government is trying to create an attractive employment system that is more humane for young workers. Furthermore, China is experiencing alarmingly slow population growth. Facing a shrinking labour force in the years ahead, the government needs to find ways to continue the momentum of the economy by making work more appealing.

The potential implications of this ruling for businesses in China

The recent crackdown on China’s working culture has had both positive and negative implications for businesses. Firstly, it firmly places the government on the side of the workers. Strengthening the supervision of the labour market will force more tech giants to roll back tough working conditions. By bringing this issue to the wider public’s attention, worker overtime issues could lead to a rise in labour disputes that could negatively impact several worker-employer relationships. 

Responding to the announcement, some companies have already implemented changes, including Douyin, Tencent and Kuaishou. Whilst this is positive for workers, some are not in favour. Motivated to hit key performance indicators and eager for overtime pay, some have become accustomed to the 996 working culture. According to a report from Caixin, employees at Bytedance (owner of TikTok and Douyin) saw their paycheques shrink 10 to 20% from previous months as overtime pay dwindled. As Mark Tanner from China Skinny tells Focus, “I know some of the tech firms who have already tried to reduce hours and subsequent overtime pay, [and it has] not been well received by many workers. Many will miss the extra income, but others have committed to purchases and loans based on the expected overtime.”

Some of the tech firms who have already tried to reduce hours and subsequent overtime pay, [and it has] not been well received by many workers. 

The 996 work culture has become entrenched over several years, and a government ruling alone might not change people’s habits as the economic incentives remain the same. “I believe that the change will be truly minor,” says Campos. “Companies like Alibaba and its affiliates will most likely have to change, [especially] since Jack Ma has fallen out of favour with the government. However, other companies like Huawei that are almost a symbol of China’s economic prowess, may end up getting a free pass.”

China’s changing labour system will directly affect company recruitment processes, employment policies and organisational structures. If the law is strictly enforced, some enterprises might face the risk of bankruptcy as their efficiency could significantly decrease, especially if other companies find creative legal loopholes to continue overtime schedules.

The future of China’s working culture and the labour market

The push to regulate working hours will have ramifications in China’s labour market. For one, the tech sector might experience a rise in employment. There is a significant gap between the number of hours required under the 996 regime (72) and that allowed for under Chinese law (44). It follows that if the law is strictly enforced, we could see an increase in employment by as much as 30%, as companies have to hire more staff to make up for the ‘lost’ hours of overextended workers.

The move towards better labour protection must be seen as a positive move towards improving the livelihoods of workers trapped in the passive cycle of 996. As Tanner notes, it will also help to “level the playing field” for those who felt they were being held back by their desire for a greater work-life balance. However, the impact of such a ruling might take some time to manifest itself. Working 996 is often an unwritten rule in many companies, driven by peer pressure, and so there are still major obstacles to overhauling the working culture in China.

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