In a late-August ruling, China’s supreme court declared one of the country’s most infamous work practices illegal.
Known as “996,” the term is shorthand for a work schedule spanning from 9AM to 9PM, six days per week. Though popularized by the country’s soaring tech firms, often evoking images of hip urban startup employees with stock option plans hustling before being made millionaires by an IPO or funding round, “996” has evolved in how it is understood and applied by employers and employees, as well as how it is viewed by regulators.
Indeed, while the August 26 Supreme Court decision and …