DJI’s “mandatory 9 pm off-duty” policy has recently sparked widespread debate on Chinese social platform Weibo. Introduced on Feb.27, the drone maker requires employees to leave by 9 pm, with office lights forcibly turned off in Shanghai. Previously, DJI faced criticism for excessive overtime, as core R&D teams often worked past 11 pm or into the early morning.
Why it matters: DJI has long been known for its intense overtime culture within the domestic industry. The adjustment is expected to improve its corporate image, protect employees’ health, and enhance efficiency by reducing ineffective overtime.
Details: On March.9, the hashtag “DJI’s mandatory 9 pm off-duty policy” quickly trended on Weibo, reaching around 72.43 million views and 16,000 posts.
- DJI managers are leading by example, leaving work on time and reminding employees to adhere to the policy, and this is followed by HRBP (Human Resources Business Partner) inspections, according to local media outlet Jimu. At the Shenzhen headquarters, the new policy is enforced mainly through manpower, while at the Shanghai office, office lights are turned off, the report said.
- The flexible 9:00–10:30 am clock-in policy remains unchanged, with DJI employees working 8 to 9.5 hours daily, including meal breaks. With a 9:00 pm end time, minus 1.5 hours for lunch and 1 hour for dinner, daily work hours stay within this range.
- An anonymous DJI employee told TechNode that she was happy with the new policy, seeing it as a positive step against excessive work culture in the tech industry. “It is progressive, but I do worry about performance evaluations. If our workload doesn’t change, we’ll just end up taking unfinished work home,” she explained.
Context: On Feb. 25, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) of China held a fair competition symposium with several companies. Deputy Director Meng Yang engaged in in-depth discussions with executives from Trina Solar, JA Solar, LONGi Green Energy, Alibaba Group, JD.com, BAIC Group, and Mercedes-Benz Group on tackling “excessive competition.”
- The meeting aimed to strengthen enterprise communication, enhance antitrust enforcement, enforce fair competition reviews, accelerate a unified national market, and help businesses navigate competition challenges for high-quality development, according to the SAMR.
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