The Rebellion Against China’s 996 Culture

Workers will no longer tolerate the punishing schedules of technology giants

Jack Ma, co-founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group. Credit: World Economic Forum via flickr/CC BY 2.0

996.

That number means 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week, and is shorthand for the punishing schedule Chinese workers are expected to maintain. A 72-hour workweek with little time for anything else: No family time. No time to meet friends…