携程说：不想上班就别来

Speaking of China's workplace culture, Ctrip recently did something that surprised a lot of people.

They announced they're running a "no-reason personal leave" experiment.

Simply put, employees can take an extra forty-five days off per year.

And they don't have to explain to their boss why.

If you want to rest, just rest.

No reason needed.

This is very rare among Chinese internet companies.

Let's go into detail about this.

First, who is Ctrip.

Ctrip is one of China's biggest online travel platforms.

Many people use Ctrip to buy plane tickets, book hotels, and reserve train tickets.

It's based in Shanghai.

It has tens of thousands of employees.

Ctrip's founder is named Liang Jianzhang.

This person is very interesting.

He's not just a businessman.

He's also an economist.

He has spent a lot of time studying China's population issues.

He thinks Chinese people work too hard.

This has led to many problems.

Not wanting to have children is one of them.

So he's always looking for ways to change how the company works.

This "no-reason personal leave" is his latest attempt.

The specific rules are like this.

Starting from May first.

Ctrip will select about six thousand employees to participate in this experiment.

These six thousand people will be randomly divided into two groups.

One group is the experimental group.

They can enjoy this new policy.

Each year on top of their existing leave.

They get an extra forty-five days of personal leave.

The other group is the control group.

Their leave stays the same as before.

Then after one year they'll see.

What differences there are between the two groups.

This method is actually a "randomized controlled trial" from scientific research.

It's similar to testing new drugs in medicine.

One group takes the medicine, one group takes a placebo.

See if there's an effect.

Ctrip is using the same method to test a management policy.

This is a first among Chinese companies.

Back to these forty-five days.

There are several important details.

First, these forty-five days are unpaid.

This is not paid leave.

If you don't work, you don't get paid.

Second, you can take them anytime.

You don't need to say in advance.

And you don't need to say what you're doing.

Third, these forty-five days can accumulate.

You don't have to use them all at once.

You can take one day today and one day tomorrow.

Or you can take two weeks at once.

It's up to you.

Is this policy good or not?

It depends on how you look at it.

If you're someone with savings.

You might think this is great.

Sometimes you just need a break.

You don't want to go to work but don't have any particular reason.

Before, you just had to push through.

Now you can just take the day off.

But if you're someone whose monthly salary barely covers living expenses.

Forty-five unpaid days might be meaningless to you.

You simply wouldn't dare take them.

There's also another possibility.

You dare to take some but don't dare use too many.

Because you're afraid your manager will think you're not hardworking.

Afraid it will affect your promotions and raises.

Afraid of being labeled as "not proactive."

In China this is called the "afraid to take leave" culture.

Many companies say you can take time off.

But very few people actually do.

Because everyone is watching.

You took leave but others didn't.

What will the manager think?

This is why this experiment is so meaningful.

If Ctrip can prove through data.

That employees who take more leave actually have higher efficiency.

That they're actually more willing to stay at the company.

Then this would be very strong evidence.

It could change the thinking of many bosses.

Speaking of China's work culture.

Many people know about "nine-nine-six."

Nine in the morning to nine at night, six days a week.

This used to be the norm in the internet industry.

Although later the government said this is illegal.

But many companies still make you work overtime in various ways.

For example, having meetings that run very late.

Sending messages expecting you to reply at midnight.

The manager doesn't leave so you feel too embarrassed to leave.

In this broader environment.

What Ctrip is doing is truly a breath of fresh air.

It's not just saying "we don't do overtime."

It's saying "you don't even have to show up."

These two things are different.

No overtime just means leaving when your shift ends.

Not showing up means you don't even have to come to work.

Of course there are also doubters.

Some say this might become a disguised form of layoffs.

The company hints that you should take more days off.

Then says your performance isn't good enough and fires you.

Others say forty-five days sounds like a lot.

But without pay, most people will only take three to five days.

Not very meaningful.

These are all reasonable concerns.

But we can look at how other countries have done things.

Britain did a very famous experiment in 2022.

Over sixty companies tried a four-day work week.

What were the results?

Ninety-two percent of companies said they would continue.

Employees were happier.

Efficiency didn't decrease.

Some companies even saw revenue increase.

Microsoft Japan also tried this.

One month of four-day weeks.

Efficiency increased by forty percent.

Iceland was even more impressive.

They did a nationwide experiment.

The conclusion was that reducing work hours doesn't affect productivity.

Now most people in Iceland only work thirty-five to thirty-six hours per week.

These examples prove a point.

Working longer hours doesn't equal higher efficiency.

Sometimes it's the opposite.

When people are too tired, the quality of their work drops.

But China's situation is more complicated.

Because it's not just about working hours.

It's also about culture.

Even if the system changes.

The mindset in people's hearts isn't easy to change.

"Everyone else is working overtime, how can I just leave."

That kind of mentality can't be solved by a single policy.

So I think the most meaningful part of Ctrip's experiment.

Isn't the forty-five days themselves.

It's the attitude it conveys.

That the company trusts its employees.

Employees are adults.

They know how to manage their own time.

They don't need to be managed like elementary school students.

If the data one year from now can prove this point.

For China's entire workplace culture.

It would be a very valuable reference.

We'll know the answer in one year.