Tech Won't Save Us Who’s Winning in China’s Fight Against 996? w/ JS Tan
Paris Marx is joined by JS Tan to discuss how Chinese tech workers fought against “996” work practices and whether the its phaseout is being driven by that movement or by the changing needs of the government and tech companies.
JS Tan is a graduate student at MIT, a former tech worker, and a member of Collective Action in Tech, a project to advance the tech worker movement. Follow JS on Twitter at @organizejs.
Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, and support the show on Patreon.
The podcast is produced by Eric Wickham and part of the Harbinger Media Network.
Also mentioned in this episode:
- JS wrote about why China’s 996 work schedules are changing and the factors driving it.
- Rest of World also had recent reporting on changes to 996 practices.
- Collective Action in Tech has an embedded organizer program that is open for applications.
- The Verge wrote about Justin Sun, a controversial figure in crypto.
- In 2020, Ant Group's US IPO was canceled.
- China has launched a number of policies to crack down on its tech industry in recent years.