Starting in 2008

The Biography of Zhang, a Coder

At first, Zhang became a coder straight out of college. Though only of mediocre ability, he came of age during the internet boom and was surprisingly valued by his company. At thirty-one, he was promoted to manager, with stock options in sight. He took on debt to buy a home in the suburbs of Beijing, married, and settled down, looking every bit the rising star.

But fate is fickle. At thirty-five, the industry suddenly went into a deep freeze, and layoffs cut like a blade. Zhang was among the first to go. Unwilling to sink, he looked for work twice.

The first job was at a startup. His technical skills were still there, but he was older, his salary was halved, and working from nine in the morning to nine at night, six days a week, had become the norm. The second was at an outsourcing firm, where he faced even more age discrimination. When projects were urgent, he worked through the night; once they were over, he was let go.

Deep in debt, Zhang’s wife filed for divorce, took their child, and demanded the house. Zhang was left with nothing but massive loans. He became a delivery rider, hoping to scrape by in the gig economy. But this line of work cloaks itself in the fine name of freedom while practicing brutal exploitation: algorithms drive workers to their limits, pay per order keeps shrinking, complaints bring fines, and there is no way to appeal.

Zhang worked himself to the bone every day. Exhaustion took its toll, his heart condition returned, and at thirty-nine he died in his rented room. The landlord did not find him until ten days later.

In conclusion: At first, he joined a major tech company and thought destiny had chosen him. Only after falling on hard times did he realize he was no more than an ant beneath the wheels of the age. The mortgage remained unpaid, and his wife had remarried; the stock options came to nothing, and so did his life.

Alas! Look at Zhang’s life: he rose in a blaze of glory and fell in an instant. Going with the flow kept him fed and clothed; trying to hold on to his dignity only got it trampled. Job hunting in middle age was like walking on thin ice; the gig economy was a trap. Which modern-day worker isn’t Zhang?