When Ottawa HR adviser Carol Ring posted a poll asking about the “996” work model on LinkedIn, she was pretty sure she knew what the results would be. But the answers she got back surprised her. The “996” work model, where employees work from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. six days a week, originated in […]
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When Ottawa HR adviser Carol Ring posted a poll asking about the “996” work model on LinkedIn, she was pretty sure she knew what the results would be. But the answers she got back surprised her.
The “996” work model, where employees work from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. six days a week, originated in China’s tech industry. The trend created a buzz online in tech hubs such as Silicon Valley, since its aim was for companies to innovate quicker to get ahead of competitors.
Ring, executive coach and CEO of Ottawa-based The Culture Connection, said she wasn’t surprised that the concept would pique interest in the American tech sector.
“‘996’ isn’t formally institutionalized in the States, although (its) high-tech sector is known for its hustle culture. (In) Silicon Valley, there's fierce competition for market dominance. They wear it like a badge of honour,” she said, pointing to tech founders such as Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk as examples.
The work model piqued Ring’s interest as well, prompting her to ask her LinkedIn network what they thought the biggest barrier to adopting the “996” work model would be. While she expected to see an overwhelming majority say it would be Canada’s labour laws, she was surprised when only 50 per cent of respondents offered that response, while 43 per cent said Canada’s values and expectations for the workplace would reject it.
“For people here in Canada, the talent market simply isn’t going to allow it,” Ring told OBJ in a recent interview. “I think people are okay with those end-of-quarter pushes or with (working more on a) special project. But month after month, quarter after quarter and year after year, people just aren’t going to put up with it … It’s just not who we are as Canadians. We care about work-life balance and family time so it just doesn’t make it in Canadian culture.”
Ottawa HR expert Heidi Hauver agrees.
“I’m generally really open to new ways of working, but there are reasons why labour laws exist. This kind of practice isn’t responsible. It’s certainly not safe or sustainable,” Hauver said. “Schedules like this create health and safety risks and it’s certainly not a badge of honour.”
In fact, working longer hours doesn’t equal more productivity, Hauver said. Research shows quite the opposite, with employee burnout being one of the main reasons for stunted productivity in the workplace.
“Healthy teams build healthy companies … You can’t expect stronger quality or sustainable output over time by pushing your people … At the end of the day, you want to bring work to your teams that inspire them and get them excited to put in that time, effort and energy. But the reality is that you need to give them time off to do things outside of work,” Hauver said.
While it’s normal for people to take an interest in their work beyond the 40-hour work week, such as networking events or learning a skill, it should be an individual decision and not a mandate from a company, she added.
“I think anybody who is passionate about their work often puts in more than the traditional hours. That might be because of side projects or work they’re doing to advance their career … But we have rules around what is allowed from a company in terms of putting expectations on people,” Hauver said.
If people find their job too demanding, it could encourage them to seek other work, Ring said.
“People have other options. Coming out of COVID, a lot of people had a lot of reflection time about what’s important to them. We saw that with the ‘Great Resignation’ (in 2021) where people said, ‘I’m not happy and I’m not putting up with this,’” Ring said.
Companies interested in the “996” model might want to look at other ways to improve work schedules to encourage innovation and productivity, Hauver suggested.
“I think as our world of work is ever-evolving, we’re going to see adjustments in schedules. I don’t believe employers should or are going to take on ‘996’-style schedules. I think it’s more about (understanding) when people do their best work and when they are most productive,” she said.
In a world that seems to be in a tug-of-war between “hustle culture” and work-life balance, Hauver said workplaces should be looking at flexibility.
“If someone’s a morning person or they do their best creative work in the evening, then maybe it’s about looking to be flexible about when they do their hours, rather than the traditional nine-to-five,” Hauver said.
“Hybrid and flexible work is not going to disappear,” she added. “I think the pandemic fundamentally changed how we work. Companies are rethinking how they lead, how their teams are going to collaborate and how they’re going to support their people … I think it’s really important (for leaders) to have their company, their people be a part of the solution.”
Ring said, “There’s a lot of experimentation going on (in the workplace). For a while in high-tech, it was all about gaming centres and sleep pods at work. Some of that is fading away now, but the big experiment (continues) to find this sweet spot where we get great productivity, innovation and collaboration without the burnout and mental health issues.”
