DJI and Midea Mandate Employees to Clock Off on Time
A new trend is emerging in some Chinese companies to change the long-working-hour corporate culture. Recently, topics about dronemaker DJI and home appliance giant Midea Group mandating their employees to clock off on time have been trending on China's social media platforms.
DJI's Initiative to End Late Nights
On February 27, DJI launched a campaign to encourage employees to leave the office at 9 pm. Managers and HR specialists at the company's headquarters in Shenzhen would urge staff to leave as soon as the clock struck 9. The Shanghai branch even went to the extreme of turning off the lights in the entire office at that time.
Employees shared their experiences on Xiaohongshu, describing being "driven out" of the company at night. Some were surprised to find an empty parking lot and a crowded metro station when they clocked off at 9 pm.
Previously, employees at DJI's R&D department often worked until 11 pm or midnight. However, recently, almost all the workers on the same floor have been leaving by around 9:10 pm.
Midea's Strict Regulations to Simplify Work
Coincidentally, topics about Midea Group mandating its employees to clock off at 6:20 pm also trended on China's Sina Weibo. The company confirmed that they established six strict regulations at the beginning of the year to simplify work procedures. These regulations include a ban on meetings after work and unnecessary overtime driven by formalism.
Midea's chairman and CEO, Fang Hongbo, released a document in January requiring the simplification of work measures to save time for creating valuable things for users.
The company's official Weibo account responded to the trending topic with a smile, confirming that employees "really do not work overtime."
Growing Sentiment Against the Rat Race
This trend reflects a growing sentiment against the "rat race" in China. The government work report unveiled during this year's two sessions stated that China will take comprehensive steps to address rat race competition and develop a unified national market.
6 Comments
Habibi
They're forcing us to leave, but the workload still needs to be done. Now we just have to finish it at home, unpaid!
Comandante
I'm not sure if this is good for productivity. Deadlines will still have to be met, regardless of the clock-off time.
Rotfront
This policy doesn't consider different individual needs. Some people prefer to work late, not necessarily because they're forced to.
Muchacha
Finally, companies are taking steps to prioritize work-life balance. It's about time!
Matzomaster
This might encourage a more efficient way of working, focusing on results rather than just staying late at the office.
KittyKat
It's unfair to punish the entire team by forcing everyone to leave at the same time, even if some haven't finished their work.