While extended working days contribute to significant growth in the economy in many nations, many social issues emerged as well, harming people from a healthy perspective to economic chaos.
Fewer leaves and holidays companies granted caused more public pressure. Long-time working leads to imbalanced lives, causing many employees’ physical and mental illnesses due to staying sanitary and over-concentrates. In this case, work not only occupies a large portion of people’s lives and squeezes their leisure time, but also decreases the frequency they communicate with friends and families. As a result, exercise has become a luxury, and problems such as obesity are more prevalent among workers which shows a young trend even. Mental issues like anxiety, and depression have been found widely with a high suicide rate within companies as well. China, with renowned long working hours and days all over the world, advocating 10 hours per day, 6 days per week, and encouraging working overtime has achieved a dramatic economic increase in the past decades, however, it owns one of the highest suicide rates and been complained by their people for a long time, proving exploit phenomenon in the job market.
Furthermore, rat races formed in the recruitment market with disruption may result in layoffs. Extra working time is beneficial to companies of income and cost, with lower wages and more workload that disadvantaged older laborers because of their degenerative physical conditions and cutting more job positions. Tencent, one of the famous Chinese internet companies, has laid off nearly 80% of its employees older than 35 while fewer interns admitted, leading to fewer opportunities for billions of graduates and a number of jobless, and finally biting back at the economy as people’s average income declines.
In conclusion, extra working time can cause imbalance between work and life and harm people’s health, while disturbing normal economic market.