Read a bit lower, and there are promises of perks galore: competitive compensation, free meals, free gym membership, free health and dental care and so on. But then comes the catch.
Each job ad contains a warning: “Please don’t join if you’re not excited about… working ~70 hrs/week in person with some of the most ambitious people in NYC.”
The website belongs to Rilla, a New York-based tech business which sells AI-based systems that allow employers to monitor sales representatives when they are out and about, interacting with clients.
The company has become something of a poster child for a fast-paced workplace culture known as 996, also sometimes referred to as hustle culture or grindcore.
In simple terms, it puts a premium on long working hours, typically 9am to 9pm, six days a week (hence “996”).
I’m a bit burnt out and have ADHD so it only works if I have a gun to my head and I can’t do it consistently, but essentially if I worked these 72 hour weeks for 2 or 3 years straight, I could actually buy a very nice home with no loan whatsoever.
But that’s because I contract through my own company for a pretty decent hourly rate. Reality is I’m working more like 70 hours a month since about May lol