Chinese tech companies push staff to the limit
Chinese tech companies are pressuring employees amid slowing growth. Layoffs and increased demands mirror start-up days. Pinduoduo sets high productivity standards but faces overwork issues. Older workers feel job insecurity. "Neijuan" concept highlights stagnant efforts. Stress, mental health concerns rise due to demanding culture. Tech sector offers high pay and mobility but lacks work-life balance, impacting well-being.
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Chinese tech companies are intensifying pressure on employees as growth slows and competition rises. Executives are cutting staff and demanding more from those remaining, reminiscent of leaner start-up days. Companies like Pinduoduo are seen as models for high productivity but at the cost of grueling hours, with reports of overwork-related deaths. Older tech professionals face heightened job insecurity, with companies favoring younger, unmarried workers. The demanding culture and relentless competition have led to mental health issues and high levels of stress among employees. The term "neijuan" or "involution" describes the phenomenon of intensifying efforts without real gains in a stagnant economy. Tech workers are expected to prioritize work over personal life, with long hours and constant availability. Despite the challenges, tech remains an attractive sector in China due to high pay and opportunities for social mobility based on performance. The industry's demanding work culture and lack of work-life balance continue to impact employees' well-being and job security.
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4 commentsThe magazine has a narrative it is trying to push. Anyone running a business sees this type of thing quite differently. You have to keep people motivated and pushing themselves. You can do it in such a way that is positive or negative... riding that line is exceptionally difficult and every person is different. It is quite possible that culturally they excel when pushed in such a way. Hard to tell from the bleachers.
- saying the quiet part out loud gets you fired - everyone is expected to squeeze the maximum amount out of themselves and the proof is everything else about you dies
The social push back from the government is interesting & indistinguishable from the role here in the States.
The closing line is the key “our competitors are doing it, we don’t want to lose because we aren’t.”
This is the runaway train of capitalism, when people override the obvious because they assume their competitors are doing the same and probably more.
The whole game is run by fear.
It’s one of the reasons I’ve been drifting from the “short burst to a big win” model of startups.
It’s very, very clear that the tech companies who are new category leaders play the long game from Harry’s latest Twitter post.
https://x.com/HarryStebbings/status/1805376621811220863
That said, I’d echo that the people I see at the heart of successful startups have often subsumed almost all of life into work.
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