996.ICU

What is "996"?

996 working, ICU waiting.

A "996" work schedule refers to an unofficial work schedule (9a.m. ~ 9p.m., 6 days a week) that has been gaining more popularity. Serving a company that encourages the "996" work schedule usually means working for at least 60 hours a week.

Laws and Regulations

Labour Law of the People's Republic of China

Article 36:

The State shall practice a working hour system wherein labourers shall work for no more than eight hours a day and no more than 44 hours a week on the average.

Article 39:

Where an enterprise can not follow the stipulations in Article 36 and Article 38 of this Law due to the special nature of its production, it may, with the approval of the administrative department of labour, adopt other rules on working hours and rest.

Article 41:

The employing unit may extend working hours as necessitated by its production or business operation after consultation with the trade union and labourers, but the extended working hour per day shall generally not exceed one hour; if such extension is needed for special reasons, under the condition that the health of labourers is guaranteed, the extended hours shall not exceed three hours per day. However, the total extension in a month shall not exceed thirty-six hours.

Article 43:

The employing unit shall not extend working hours of labourers in violation of the provisions of this Law.

Article 90:

Where the employing unit, in violation of the stipulations of this Law, extends the working hours of labourers, the administrative department of labour shall give it a warning, order it to make corrections, and may impose a fine thereon.

Article 91:

Where the employing unit commits any of the following acts infringing upon the legitimate rights and interests of labourers, the administrative department of labour shall order it to pay labourers remuneration of wages or to make up for economic losses, and may also order it to pay compensation:

……

(2) To refuse to pay labourers remuneration of wages for the extended working hours;

……

Labor Contract Law of the People’s Republic of China

Article 31

The employing unit shall strictly implement the norm set for labor quota and shall not compel the workers to work overtime or do so in disguised form. If an employing unit arranges for a worker to work overtime, it shall give him overtime pay in accordance with the relevant regulations of the State.

Article 62

The receiving unit shall perform the following obligations:
......
    3. to give overtime pay and performance bonuses and provide welfare benefits related to specific posts;
......

Article 85

Where an employing unit commits one of the following acts, the administrative department of labor shall order it to pay the labor remuneration, give overtime pay or make other financial compensation within a time limit; if the labor remuneration is lower than the local minimum wage rate, it shall pay the difference. If it fails to make such payment at the expiration of the time limit, it shall be ordered to pay an additional compensation to the worker at a rate of not less than 50 percent but not more than 100 percent of the amount payable:

1. failing to pay a worker his labor remuneration on time and in full as stipulated in the labor contract or as prescribed by the State;
2. paying labor remuneration at a rate below the local minimum wage rate;
3. arranging overtime work but giving no overtime pay;
   ......

Gaining more popularity and publicity

In early September 2016, it was said that 58.com (58同城, a classified advertisements company) introduced the "996" work schedule, without paying employees overtime who worked on weekends. The company later claimed that the schedule was only practiced managing extra workflow during peak season - September and October, and that the schedule was not compulsory.

In early 2019, Youzan (有赞, a Hangzhou-based E-commerce company) announced the company would adopt "996" work schedule in the annual convention. Bai Ya, the CEO of Youzan, responded: "This will definitely be a right decision when we look back in a few years."

In mid-March 2019, it was reported that JD.com (京东, a major E-commerce company) started adopting "996" or "995" work schedules in some departments. The PR posted that (Our culture is) to devote ourselves wholeheartedly (to achieve the business objectives) via Maimai (脉脉, a Chinese real-name business social network platform).

Gaining more publicity only recently, this work schedule, however, has long been a known "secret" practiced in a lot of companies in China.

Compensation and benefits

According to the Labour Law, employees who follow the "996" work schedule deserve to be paid 2.275 times of their base salary. Unfortunately, people who work under "996" rarely receive overtime pay.

Where does the name of the repo 996.ICU come from?

If you continue to tolerate the "996" work schedule, you will risk your own health and might need to stay in an Intensive Care Unit someday. (6 rhymes with U in Mandarin)

Developers' lives matter.