British expat 'completely drained' by long hours work in China

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Imagine thinking you landed your dream job as a video game designer at one of China’s top technology giants, only to find yourself trapped in a relentless cycle of 12-hour shifts and overtime work on weekends.

A British expatriate's viral account of his gruelling reality working at Chinese tech giant NetEase shattered the glossy facade of tech industry glamour, exposing the demanding labour practices in the sector.

In a series of posts on Chinese social media platform Xiaohongshu, Mr Jack Forsdike, 27, documented his journey from securing a job at NetEase in 2022 in the southern city of Guangzhou to his resignation in July this year.

One of his posts, in April this year, featured a photo of himself utterly worn out alongside a self-deprecating caption reading, "Why did I come to China to work?".

The post went viral, amassing more than 4,800 likes initially. As his post was widely picked up by mainstream media in China and Hong Kong, his account reportedly received millions of views.

Many social media users found it particularly amusing to see a foreigner grappling with the demanding work culture in China.

DREAM JOB TURNED NIGHTMARE

Mr Forsdike's deep fascination with China began in his undergraduate days while he was studying for a modern languages degree at the University of Manchester in England.

After graduating in 2020, he was determined to go there and eventually landed a role at NetEase in 2022 where he worked as a translator interpreting in meetings and translating documents to English.

While the role was not an ideal position for him, it was an entry point into the industry. 

At first, everything seemed perfect. Mr Forsdike even commented in a post about his new job that he did not have to work overtime and encouraged others to apply for roles at the company. He is fluent in Chinese.

At the start of this year, he was given the opportunity that he had always hoped for: A role in the company's planning department.

This position placed him at the core of NetEase’s operations, contributing directly to the development of the video game powerhouse's mobile games.

Soon, though, the dream job began to reveal its darker side. The demanding work culture that came with the role was relentless and Mr Forsdike found himself working long hours and overtime.

'996' WORK CULTURE

Before Mr Forsdike officially stepped into his new role at NetEase, the human resources team delivered a blunt reality check to him.

He was told that his team operated on a "996" schedule. This notorious work culture, prevalent in many Chinese tech companies, mandates that employees work from 9am to 9pm, six days a week. 

Such a relentless work schedule has led to many young workers ditching 996 roles to “lie flat” or enjoy a slower pace of life.

With a major game release just six months away, Mr Forsdike said that he was warned of needing to "adapt" to the demanding hours.

His new manager made an effort to accommodate him since foreigners often found it challenging to keep pace with the rest of the Chinese workers, but Mr Forsdike said that he soon found himself subject to the relentless pace and constant deadlines of the 996 cycle.

In an interview with Chinese state-owned English-language online magazine Sixth Tone on Sept 5, Mr Forsdike revealed that there was always an urgent deadline to meet and once, he even worked 20 days straight, often finishing well after 9pm.

In his posts on Xiaohongshu, Mr Forsdike also said that he had no time to exercise and would often find himself replying to messages past midnight. 

"No one ever said to me, you need to come in on Sunday as well. But if I hadn’t, my stuff wasn’t going to get finished. I wasn’t the only one. It was maybe 20 per cent of the overall team," he added.

'BEAST OF BURDEN'

Online users responded with a mix of empathy and humour to Mr Forsdike's plight, with many expressing amusement at his struggle to adapt to the harsh reality of China's hyper-competitive work culture.

One comment went, "A foreigner came to China and became a foreign beast of burden", referring to him becoming like the Chinese who are subject to tough labour like cows and horses.

Another user remarked that even foreigners are unable to withstand the harsh work culture in China, while someone pointed out that Mr Forsdike has finally experienced firsthand what it means to endure a 996 schedule in the country.

When the expat announced his resignation in July this year, the contrast between his exhausted state and his newfound freedom sparked a wave of memes.

Online users humorously made comparisons between a previous picture he posted of himself as a beleaguered employee where he wrote "my face shape is like a potato" to photos of him enjoying a coffee while sporting a Hawaiian-design shirt.

In his interview with Sixth Tone, Mr Forsdike said that he wished to encourage more young people to avoid the 996 lifestyle.

"People lose the chance to spend time on their hobbies. They lose the chance to have fun and meet new friends, or even get into a relationship and start a family.

"They lose the chance to do so many things in their lives because they feel completely drained by their work."

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