政协委员呼吁遏制超时加班：问题很复杂

全国政协委员指出，当前我国的996问题处于企业失控、监管失序、工会失灵的状态，要改变996工作文化，不是那么简单的事。

Members of China's top political advisory body have proposed reinforced and effective supervision to stop companies overworking their employees.

为了阻止企业让员工超时加班，全国政协委员提议加强有效监管。

Since 2019, the 996 work culture－which means working from 9 am to 9 pm six days a week, a schedule widely used at tech companies－has sparked public debate, with some industry insiders calling it a "blessing".

自2019年以来，996工作文化就引发了公众讨论，所谓996工作制是指劳动者每天从早上9点一直工作到晚上9点，每周工作6天。这种工作制度在中国互联网企业很盛行。一些业内人士将这一现象称作“福报”。

The issue of overworking employees is getting worse, said Li Guohua, a member of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, pointing out that the absence of official supervision and protection by labor unions has led to the current situation.

政协委员李国华在全国政协十三届四次会议上指出，当前我国996问题处于企业失控、监管失序、工会失灵的状态。

"Some companies require employees to work more than 380 hours a month－even more than 996, under which 300 working hours a month are required," he said. "More hectic working schedules are prevailing in areas including short-video sharing, online education, ride-hailing and e-commerce."

李国华称：“有的公司要求员工每月工作380小时以上，甚至远远高出996的每月300小时工作时间。现在在短视频、在线教育、出行、电商等领域，部分互联网企业开始推行更加繁忙的工作作息制度。”

Wang Meihua, also a CPPCC National Committee member and deputy chief engineer at Shanghai Construction Group, said that official work hours have also been blurred at companies that rely on calls or instant messaging services for their business. For such enterprises, some employees are required to remain on standby 24 hours a day.

全国政协委员、上海建工集团股份有限公司副总工程师王美华则指出，自从有了智能手机，有了工作微信群，很多人的上下班时间界限就模糊了，有的企业要求员工24小时在微信群里待命。

"Missing any calls or not replying to instant messages immediately will be regarded as a breach of duty "that has led some to lose their jobs, Wang said.

王美华说：“漏接电话或不及时回复就算违规，甚至会遭到开除。”

Li urged authorities to pay more attention to the problem while enhancing regulations to protect workers' well-being.

李国华敦促管理部门重视对“996”问题的监管，保护劳动者的生命健康权。

The problem is complex.

这个问题很复杂。

On the one hand, authorities have made some headway. In November 2019, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security released a labor contract guideline stating that work time is not allowed to exceed eight hours a day or 40 hours a week.

一方面，有关部门已经率先采取了一些措施。2019年11月，人力资源和社会保障部发布了劳动合同示范文本，规定职工每日工作时间不超过8小时，每周工作时间不超过40小时。

Work time can be stretched after negotiations, but overtime should not exceed one hour a day in general or three hours a day in special circumstances. Further, no more than 36 working hours can be added over a one-month period, according to the guideline.
根据示范文本，经协商后可以延长工作时间，一般每日不得超过1小时，特殊原因每日不得超过3小时，每月不得超过36小时。

"The nation's high-quality development is an endurance race, driven by the labor force's physical and psychological health," said Lyu Guoquan, also a member of the CPPCC National Committee.

全国政协委员吕国泉说：“高质量发展是一场耐力赛。劳动者的身心健康是这场比赛的推动力。”

"Valuing people and protecting their health is the right way to generate fortunes."

“秉持以人为本的原则，关注和维护劳动者的身心健康，才是创造价值和利润的正确路径。”

 On the other hand, workers in many sectors in China, the second-largest economy and biggest developing nation in the world, are encouraged to work hard to accelerate the country's development, not only to surpass their domestic peers but also their international counterparts.

与此同时，作为全球第二大经济体和最大的发展中国家，我国许多行业都鼓励劳动者努力工作以加速国家发展，不只是为了超越国内同行，也是为了打败国外的竞争对手。

"The economy has slowed as the novel coronavirus epidemic has caused the unemployment rate to increase," Zhang Lin, an associate professor at the University of New Hampshire in the United States, told media outlet LatePost last month. "Also, the glut of talent has put more pressure on people looking for work. It is no wonder workers are complaining. Whenever you quit your job, there is someone to replace you."

美国新罕布什尔大学助理教授张琳上个月在对话媒体《晚点》时说；“现在经济下行，疫情也导致失业率升高，人才供给过饱和，你不干总有人干。在这层层压力下，有抱怨也不奇怪。”

Zhong Ruiqing, an associate professor at Zhejiang University, said that it's also difficult to enforce labor laws that target 996 work schedules.

浙江大学副教授钟瑞庆表示，针对996工作制的劳动法实施起来也有困难。

"Employees usually work overtime 'voluntarily' because they dare not leave the office when the boss is still on duty," Zhong told LatePost. "Another problem is the inability to enforce rules. Can labor authorities require companies to release their employees at quitting time? Or can they turn off the company's lights at 5 pm?"

钟瑞庆告诉《晚点》说：“现在员工加班，形式上都是自愿的。你到了下班时间，领导没走，你一个人敢不敢走？而且执法也有一定难度，难道地方劳动部门要求公司到时间赶人走？比如说到了五点钟关灯？”

In addition, Zhong said that tightening supervision over companies relying on the 996 work schedule may reduce the nation's competitiveness.

钟瑞庆还指出，如果加强对依赖996工作制的企业监管，中国的竞争力可能会下降。

"For example, if Shanghai regulates such a schedule, companies may move to another city, causing Shanghai to lose its economic advantage," he said. "And if a nationwide supervisory system is carried out, the nation may see a decrease in its economic competitiveness. So policymakers should weigh the pros and cons."

“假设上海严格限制互联网公司加班，公司可能会搬到其他城市，导致上海竞争力下降。如果全国统一管，可能中国的经济竞争力就下降了。因此，决策层就必须衡量其中的利弊得失。”

Gao Qi, a 28-year-old employee at a tech company in Beijing, said that he has been feeling listless after working 996 over the past two years.

28岁的高奇（音译）供职于北京一家科技公司，他表示，经历了过去两年的996工作，他感觉很疲倦。

"My work time is much more than 12 hours a day under my company's 996 working schedule, if you factor in my commuting time－about two to three hours per round-trip," he said. "I am busy 15 hours a day, six days a week, leaving me only 78 hours a week free of work."

他说：“在公司的996工作制下，我每日工作时间远远超过12小时，如果把我的通勤时间（来回两三个小时）也算在内，我每天有15小时、每周6天都忙于工作，每周只有78个小时不工作。”

Gao said whether there's an effort to abolish 996 or to give subsidies to overworked employees, "it's time to do something."

高奇表示，无论是努力废除996工作制，还是给过劳员工发放补贴，“是时候行动起来了”。