Why some Chinese workers are 'lying flat'

Young Chinese workforce opting out - 21st March 2022

Worn out by a culture in which working relentlessly for little gain is the norm, young people in China are making a stand against the status quo. There's now a groundswell of movement in support of 'lying flat', a lifestyle shift.

Popularised during the pandemic, in 2021 when many felt increasingly under strain from workplace pressures and burgeoning demands to outperform peers, the notion of lying flat – 'tang ping' – advocates taking your foot off the pedal. In the face of China's shrinking workforce, young people are expected to slog away for even longer hours.

Originating on a much-used Chinese social media platform, one individual wrote on Tieba's discussion forum, "Lying flat is my wise movement," adding, "only by lying down can humans become the measure of all things." And the term soon became a buzzword.

Media analyst Kerry Allen remarked that people ""feel so apathetic now they're having to deal with the coronavirus and feel exhausted. They literally just want to lie down with a book, or sit and watch some TV, rather than keep the momentum going by working hard."

Tang ping, described by some as a quasi-spiritual movement, has captured many young workers' imagination by espousing the need to embrace downtime and find contentment in attainable objectives.

As the force of the pandemic abates, the tang ping movement gathers speed. Wary of returning to the brutal pre-Covid work pressures, social media's awash with posts from individuals stating they're sufficiently emboldened to opt out of the rat race. This might entail moving homeward, away from urban areas or accepting a reduction in income.

Tech tycoon and Alibaba group founder Jack Ma was condemned in 2019 after endorsing China's so-called '996' culture, with its 9am to 9pm working day and six day week. Yet although the Chinese authorities have recently outlawed this punishing daily regimen, 996 working's still what it takes to get ahead professionally.

It's to be expected that some young people have, in reassessing their priorities, chosen tang ping.