“996”是什么意思？
What does 996 mean in China?
Name: ________________ Date: ________
在中国的网上，你常常会看到三个数字：996。它不是电话号码。它说的是一种工作时间：早上九点上班，晚上九点下班，一个星期工作六天。
这样，一个星期要工作七十多个小时。可是中国的法律说，一个人一天最多工作八个小时，一个星期一般最多工作四十四个小时。
为什么大家都知道996？二零一九年，很多做电脑工作的年轻人在网上说，他们不想再996了。这件事很快就让全国的人都知道了。
二零二一年，国家也说得很清楚：公司让人996，是不对的，也是不合法的。
现在，网上还有一个新的说法：965。它的意思是早上九点上班，下午五点下班，一个星期工作五天。很多年轻人找工作的时候，会先问一句：“你们是996，还是965？”
你呢？你一天工作几个小时？
Key words
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 网上 | wǎngshàng | online; on the internet |
| 这样 | zhèyàng | like this; this way |
| 意思 | yìsi | meaning; idea |
| 常常 | chángcháng | often; frequently |
| 国家 | guójiā | country; nation; state |
| 清楚 | qīngchu | clear; distinct |
| 先 | xiān | first; in advance |
| 句 | jù | classifier for phrases and lines of speech or verse |
| 数字 | shùzì | number; digit; figure |
| 法律 | fǎlǜ | law |
| 说法 | shuōfǎ | version; account; view |
| 合法 | héfǎ | legal; lawful; legitimate |
English (for the teacher)
On the Chinese internet you often see three digits: 996. It isn’t a phone number. It describes a working schedule: start at nine in the morning, finish at nine at night, six days a week.
That makes more than seventy hours a week. But Chinese law says a person can’t work more than eight hours a day, and generally no more than forty-four hours a week.
Why does everyone know 996? In 2019, many young people doing computer work said online that they didn’t want to do 996 any more. Word of it quickly spread across the whole country.
In 2021, the state made it clear too: a company that makes people work 996 is in the wrong, and breaking the law.
Now there’s a new expression online too: 965. It means starting at nine in the morning, finishing at five in the afternoon, five days a week. When many young people look for a job, they ask one question first: “Are you 996, or 965?”
And you? How many hours a day do you work?