Seventy percent of China's urban white-collar workers put in
more than ten hours a day on average and are denied holidays,
according to a new survey reported in the Beijing Morning
Post.
The academic heading the study has warned that once working
overtime became customary, it could become a major public health
issue and the cause of early deaths.
Xu Yan, a psychologist in charge of the survey, said when she
started to study the subject of "job stress" three years ago, it
was a relatively rare phenomenon. However, the number of
professionals complaining of overwork and a lack of sleep had since
soared in urban areas.
The study of professionals in major cities showed most
white-collar workers are stressed at the thought of losing their
jobs or being able to "survive" in the fierce employment
market.
The survey was conducted by Beijing Normal University among
workers in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, but the
newspaper report did not mention the number of respondents.
"I've only had one day off during the week-long May Day
holiday," said respondent Zhang Xinxin, a female office worker at a
foreign-funded company. "I haven't been able to get home before
10:00 PM for the past three months.
"Even the taxi drivers know they can wait outside of my building
at night to pick up people like me," Zhang added.
(Xinhua News Agency May 9, 2007)