《年会不能停！》：笑中带泪的21世纪打工人之歌 "The Annual Meeting Must Go On!": A Bittersweet Song of 21st Century Workers

正值各大公司纷纷举办年会之际，后知后觉去看了时下最热的电影《年会不能停！》，倒也一下子明白这部电影为什么能够成为票房黑马——票房突破10亿元是板上钉钉的事情，它还以豆瓣8.2分的高分成为近五年豆瓣口碑最好的国产喜剧。
As major companies are holding their annual meetings, I belatedly went to see the hottest movie of the moment, "The Annual Meeting Must Go On!" I immediately understood why this film could become a box office dark horse—it's a sure thing that its box office will surpass 1 billion yuan. It also achieved a high score of 8.2 on Douban, making it the best-reviewed domestic comedy on Douban in the past five years.

《年会不能停！》海报 "The Annual Meeting Must Go On!" Poster

《年会不能停！》堪称21世纪的打工人之歌，几乎囊括了当代打工人在职场中可能遭遇的各种怪现状。经由关系与规则、职场黑话与狗屁工作、福利与福报、人与螺丝钉等几组关系，直击打工人的痛点。洞悉当代职场的荒谬之处，或许是打工人获得解放的第一步。
"The Annual Meeting Must Go On!" is hailed as the anthem of the 21st-century workers, encompassing almost all the bizarre situations contemporary workers might encounter in the workplace. Through several relationships such as connections and rules, workplace jargon and meaningless tasks, benefits and blessings, people and screws, it directly hits the pain points of workers. Understanding the absurdities of the modern workplace might be the first step towards the liberation of workers.

关系与规则 Connections and Rules

《年会不能停！》的故事始于“错位”，整个故事在错位的基础上不断演变升级。
The story of "The Annual Meeting Must Go On!" begins with a "misalignment," and the entire story continuously evolves and escalates based on this misalignment.

主人公胡建林（大鹏 饰）原本只是县城一家标准件工厂里的高级钳工，工作勤勤恳恳，做人踏踏实实，年年拿先进工作者。但作为一名蓝领，他的工资不会太高，四十好几住的还是厂里的宿舍，妻子也因嫌弃他没前途离他而去。
The protagonist Hu Jianlin (played by Da Peng) was originally a senior fitter in a standard parts factory in a small town. He worked diligently and lived honestly, earning the title of advanced worker every year. However, as a blue-collar worker, his salary was not high. In his forties, he still lived in the factory dormitory, and his wife left him because she thought he had no future.

阴差阳错，一纸调令，将胡建林调到公司总部上班。在这家员工人数达到万人规模的大集团中，胡建林原本所在的有300名工人的标准件厂，只是其中非常不起眼的一家子公司。
By a twist of fate, a transfer order brought Hu Jianlin to work at the company's headquarters. In this large group with a workforce of ten thousand, the standard parts factory where Hu Jianlin originally worked, which had 300 workers, was just a very inconspicuous subsidiary.

胡建林（大鹏 饰） Hu Jianlin (played by Da Peng)

胡建林在总公司的新职位是人事专员，干了一辈子钳工的胡建林，对人事工作一窍不通。“农民进城”“刘姥姥进大观园”是国产喜剧作品的常见结构，胡建林到大厂去，自然要闹出不少笑话。刚好赶上集团因经营不善需要裁掉6000名员工，负责裁员的胡建林就相当于掌握权力的“钦差大臣”，这又与《钦差大臣》《假如我是真的》等经典讽刺喜剧形成呼应。
Hu Jianlin's new position at the headquarters is a personnel specialist. Having worked as a fitter all his life, Hu Jianlin knows nothing about personnel work. "Farmers entering the city" and "Granny Liu visiting the Grand View Garden" are common structures in domestic comedy works. Naturally, Hu Jianlin's move to the big factory would cause a lot of jokes. It just so happened that the group needed to lay off 6,000 employees due to poor management. Hu Jianlin, who was in charge of the layoffs, was equivalent to a "royal commissioner" with power, which echoes classic satirical comedies like "The Government Inspector" and "If I Were for Real."

喜剧之外，核心的问题是：胡建林凭什么调到总公司上班的？他从一个高级钳工晋升为高级白领的依据是什么？这背后触及的，是当代职场中的晋升体系。
Beyond the comedy, the core question is: Why was Hu Jianlin transferred to the headquarters? What was the basis for his promotion from a senior fitter to a senior white-collar worker? This touches on the promotion system in the contemporary workplace.

电影中的大集团有着一套完善的职级体系，呈现金字塔结构，越往上职级越高、年薪越高、但这样的人占公司的比例越低。胡建林刚到总部时，定级为K7的人事专员，一年到手36万，后来升为K8人事组长，年薪一跃上涨为72万，再后来成为人事部的副经理，年薪上涨为100万。
The large group in the movie has a complete rank system, presented in a pyramid structure. The higher the rank, the higher the annual salary, but such people make up a smaller proportion of the company. When Hu Jianlin first arrived at the headquarters, he was classified as a K7 personnel specialist with an annual salary of 360,000. Later, he was promoted to K8 personnel team leader, with his annual salary jumping to 720,000. Eventually, he became the deputy manager of the personnel department, with an annual salary rising to 1 million.

无论大厂小厂国营民营，几乎所有的企事业单位均有一套建立在KPI等绩效管理体系基础上的职级晋升体系，奖励先进，鼓励打工人奋斗，并通过“末位淘汰”等本质上不符合劳动法规的惩戒措施倒逼打工人卖力工作。不论单位的KPI是否合理，职级晋升体系至少是给那些努力工作的打工人一个盼头，就像胡建林喜欢的歌曲《我的未来不是梦》所歌唱的，“我知道我的未来不是梦”。就像他一开始所以为的：他是因为年年评上先进，才被集团调到总部工作，好给同事们树立一个榜样。
Whether it is a large or small factory, state-owned or private, almost all enterprises and institutions have a promotion system based on KPI and other performance management systems. This system rewards the advanced, encourages workers to strive, and uses punitive measures like "last-place elimination," which essentially do not comply with labor laws, to force workers to work hard. Regardless of whether the unit's KPIs are reasonable, the promotion system at least gives those who work hard something to look forward to, just like the song "My Future is Not a Dream" that Hu Jianlin likes, which sings, "I know my future is not a dream." Just like he initially thought: he was transferred to the headquarters because he was rated as advanced every year, to set an example for his colleagues.

如果真是这样，那至少说明职级晋升体系这一“规则”仍在运转，它多少能够保证打工人在面对利益博弈时，存在一个公平公正的分配规则，也能为打工人提供一种稳定的制度预期——我只要努力工作，我就有机会升上去，我的未来就不是梦。
If this were true, it would at least show that the promotion system, this "rule," is still functioning. It can somewhat ensure that workers have a fair and just distribution rule when facing interest games and can provide workers with a stable institutional expectation—if I work hard, I have a chance to get promoted, and my future is not a dream.

然而，银幕外的打工人的切身经历却常常不是这样的：KPI倒是真的，“末位淘汰”等不合理制度让打工人们疲于奔命，可职级晋升体系却停留于纸面上——做得不好会被开除，做得好却不一定升得上去。
However, the personal experiences of workers outside the screen are often not like this: KPIs do exist, and unreasonable systems like "last-place elimination" make workers exhausted, but the promotion system remains on paper—if you don't perform well, you might get fired, but even if you perform well, you might not get promoted.

这也是胡建林此前20年的经历，哪怕年年是先进工作者又怎么样，他仍只是收入很一般的钳工，年年报名集团年会都不曾被选上。他之所以进入集团总部上班，完全是因为误会——他的同事、标准件厂的庄正直（王迅 饰）为了调到公司总部上班，花30万元贿赂了集团的人力资源部总监，却因为副总监（孙艺洲 饰）酒后迷糊把名字搞混了，胡建林才“顶替”了庄正直。原来，职级晋升不是凭能力、靠规则，而是走后门、靠关系。
This was also Hu Jianlin's experience for the past 20 years. No matter how many times he was an advanced worker, he was still just an average-earning fitter and was never selected for the group's annual meeting. The reason he got to work at the group's headquarters was entirely due to a misunderstanding—his colleague, Zhuang Zhengzhi (played by Wang Xun) from the standard parts factory, bribed the group's HR director with 300,000 yuan to get transferred to the headquarters, but because the deputy director (played by Sun Yizhou) got confused after drinking, he mixed up the names, and Hu Jianlin "replaced" Zhuang Zhengzhi. It turns out that promotions are not based on ability or rules but on connections and relationships.

这个“靠关系”的误会，后面越闹越大。正值集团裁员，人事部却来了新人，人们纷纷猜测胡建林是关系户吧？三人成虎，一开始只传胡建林是董事长的亲戚，后来谣言变成胡建林是董事长的私生子。相较于胡建林是因为年年优秀而被提拔的可能性，他是关系户是集团里大多数人的第一反应，也足见关系取代规则，成为集团用人的最大潜规则。
This "relationship" misunderstanding grew bigger and bigger. Just as the group was laying off employees, a newcomer arrived in the HR department, and people speculated that Hu Jianlin must have connections. Rumors spread, initially saying Hu Jianlin was a relative of the chairman, and later turning into Hu Jianlin being the chairman's illegitimate son. Compared to the possibility that Hu Jianlin was promoted because he was excellent every year, most people in the group first thought he had connections, which shows that connections have replaced rules and become the biggest unspoken rule in the group's employment practices.

靠关系、靠人情，这是乡土社会的普遍特征。乡土社会的利益分配依照的不是公平公正的契约和规则，而是约定俗成的“礼”，以及以血缘和地缘为核心的“人情”。你是我哥们是我亲戚，那么利益分配时我就得帮你一把，优先分配给你。虽然随着城市化进程的推进，乡土社会面临崩塌，血缘和地缘的因素在淡化，但“拟血缘化”现象仍然很突出，“在家靠父母，出门靠朋友”“多个朋友多条路”，成为朋友或兄弟，就多了一层关系与人情，在利益的分配时我就多一层优势。
Relying on connections and personal relationships is a common characteristic of rural society. The distribution of benefits in rural society is not based on fair and just contracts and rules, but on customary "rites" and "personal relationships" centered on kinship and locality. If you are my buddy or my relative, then I have to help you out during the distribution of benefits, giving you priority. Although with the advancement of urbanization, rural society is facing collapse, and the factors of kinship and locality are fading, the phenomenon of "pseudo-kinship" is still very prominent. "At home, rely on parents; outside, rely on friends." "More friends, more paths." Becoming friends or brothers adds another layer of relationship and personal connection, giving me an additional advantage in the distribution of benefits.

《年会不能停！》生动演绎了网络上曾经流传过的这么一个段子：“有本事没关系的吃苦饭，没本事有关系的跟着吃，有本事又有关系的不愁吃，没本事又没关系的看别人吃”……胡建林因为有关系，哪怕他对人事工作一窍不通，他依然混得风生水起；打工人马杰（白客 饰）有本事没关系，做得苦哈哈，外包员工潘怡然（庄达菲 饰）就更惨，干啥啥都行，背锅第一名，但转正遥遥无期……
"The Annual Meeting Must Go On!" vividly portrays a joke that once circulated on the internet: "Those with ability but no connections eat bitter meals, those with no ability but connections eat along, those with both ability and connections have no worries about food, and those with neither ability nor connections watch others eat."... Hu Jianlin, because he has connections, thrives even though he knows nothing about personnel work; worker Ma Jie (played by Bai Ke) has ability but no connections, working hard and bitterly, while outsourced employee Pan Yiran (played by Zhuang Dafei) has it even worse, being capable of everything but always taking the blame, with no hope of becoming a permanent employee.

就像导演董润年在接受“娱理”采访时所说，“从很小的时候起，我就每天听父母下班后谈论他们单位里的事儿，我有很多同学毕业后都进了互联网企业，经常听他们聊起大厂。慢慢你就会发现，其实他们讲的很多事情并没有什么本质上的差别，不管是国营单位还是互联网企业，大家遇到的问题是一样的。比如都会遇到不公正的待遇，辛辛苦苦地努力，最后的成绩和奖励都被更懂得花言巧语的人抢走。”
As director Dong Runian said in an interview with "Yuli," "Since I was very young, I listened to my parents talk about their workplace after they came home from work every day. Many of my classmates joined internet companies after graduation, and I often heard them talk about big companies. Gradually, you realize that many of the things they talk about are essentially the same. Whether it's a state-owned enterprise or an internet company, everyone faces the same problems. For example, they all encounter unfair treatment, where hard work and effort result in achievements and rewards being taken away by those who are better at sweet-talking."

跟20年前比，今日的职场肯定是在螺旋式上升，只是，关系大于规则的职级晋升潜规则仍然存在。
Compared to 20 years ago, today's workplace is definitely on a spiral rise. However, the unspoken rule that connections outweigh rules in job promotions still exists.

职场黑话与狗屁工作 Workplace jargon and bullshit jobs

初来乍到的胡建林，首先遭遇冲击的是，总部的人说的常常是他听不懂的话。诸如“从颗粒度上对齐一下”“我们要拉齐水位，把规则通晒一下，要注意线上线下互为补充，打好市场组合拳，最重要的是要找好抓手，打通底层逻辑，为未来实现颠覆式创新打好基础”，如此等等。这些就是此前网络上被经常吐槽的“互联网黑话”或“大厂黑话”。这类黑话在各行各业普遍存在，打工人只要看看自己年终总结里的大词就心领神会。
The first shock that Hu Jianlin, a newcomer, encountered was that he often couldn't understand what people at the headquarters were saying. Phrases like "align from the granularity level," "we need to level the water, expose the rules, pay attention to the complementarity of online and offline, play a good market combination punch, and most importantly, find the right handle to break through the underlying logic and lay a foundation for future disruptive innovation," and so on. These are the so-called "internet jargon" or "big company jargon" that have often been ridiculed online. Such jargon is prevalent in various industries, and workers only need to look at the big words in their year-end summaries to get the idea.

最早的黑话又称隐语、暗语、方语、市语、切口等，在古代它是三教九流、五行八作进行内部交际时使用的，以起到验证身份、内部交际、对外保密、维护自身利益等作用。民国民俗学者李子峰如此说道：“隐语之为用，能使会中之人，畅谈于大庭广众之中，而他人茫然不解，我则风气互通，意见互换，严密不泄，使人既不知我之所云，且亦无法冒冲刺探也。”
The earliest jargon was also known as argot, secret language, slang, market language, or code words. In ancient times, it was used by various trades and professions for internal communication to verify identity, maintain confidentiality, and protect their interests. Folk scholar Li Zifeng from the Republic of China said: "The use of argot allows members to talk freely in public while others remain clueless. We can exchange ideas and communicate seamlessly without leaking any information, making it impossible for outsiders to understand or infiltrate."

后来的职场黑话已经脱离原意，它当然有方便于同一圈层的人沟通的功能，也有标识身份、形成文化区隔等意图。但当前职场黑话最主要的功能，还是通过各种大词、通过“使用越来越抽象和高级的词汇”，让无意义的工作看上去像那么回事儿，让每个打工人看上去都特别用心努力、冷静理智、高瞻远瞩地在工作。
Later workplace jargon has deviated from its original meaning. It certainly facilitates communication among people within the same circle and serves to identify status and create cultural distinctions. However, the main function of current workplace jargon is to make meaningless work appear significant through the use of grandiose terms and increasingly abstract and sophisticated vocabulary, making every worker seem particularly diligent, rational, and visionary in their work.

职场黑话越是显得高深莫测、云里雾里，往往越是要遮掩工作的无意义；越是要拼命让无意义的工作显得有意义，越是得在词汇的堆叠上煞费苦心。导演董润年在《人物》杂志的自述中谈到，“我们采访的对象开始拓展到一些年轻、基层的大厂员工，发现他们很多人对写日报、周报、月报什么的深恶痛绝。我印象特别深一个女孩说：我一个礼拜就干这么点事，我得写出来三份报告，我都不知道怎么写，明明两行字能写清楚的一个事，我就得写得特复杂，好像很高大上。”
The more profound and obscure workplace jargon appears, the more it tends to conceal the meaninglessness of the work; the more effort is put into making meaningless work seem meaningful, the more painstakingly the vocabulary is stacked. Director Dong Runian mentioned in his self-narrative in "People" magazine, "We started expanding our interviews to include some young, grassroots employees of big companies and found that many of them deeply loathe writing daily, weekly, and monthly reports. I was particularly impressed by a girl who said: I only do so little in a week, but I have to write three reports about it. I don't even know how to write them. Something that can be clearly explained in two lines, I have to write in a very complicated way to make it seem grandiose."

所以，职场黑话的根源是工作无意义。美国人类学家大卫·格雷伯的著作Bullshit Jobs: A Theory在中文世界广泛传播，指向的是同一个现象：市面上大多数工作，是“无价值、无意义、对社会生产无帮助、枯燥无味、甚至是有害的”。
Therefore, the root of workplace jargon is the meaninglessness of work. American anthropologist David Graeber's book Bullshit Jobs: A Theory has been widely circulated in the Chinese-speaking world, pointing to the same phenomenon: most jobs in the market are "valueless, meaningless, unhelpful to social production, boring, and even harmful."

格雷伯提到，1930年，约翰·梅纳德·凯恩斯曾经预言，到20世纪末，在美国英国这样的发达国家，科技的进步足以实现每周工作15小时的成就。凯恩斯的寓言技术上实现了，只不过资本家不会容许人们只工作15小时，于是就要发明各种各样的狗屁工作来填充雇员的时间。
Graeber mentioned that in 1930, John Maynard Keynes predicted that by the end of the 20th century, technological advancements in developed countries like the United States and the United Kingdom would allow for a 15-hour workweek. Technically, Keynes' prophecy has been realized, but capitalists would not allow people to work only 15 hours a week, so they invented various "bullshit jobs" to fill employees' time.

书中提到各种狗屁工作，比如“随从”（flunky），衬托另一个人的重要性，让这个人看起来很重要或者让这个人感到自己很重要；比如“拼接修补者”（duct taper），是为了应对组织的某个故障或缺陷而存在的，虽然这些故障与缺陷是组织自身产生的；又比如“分派者”（task master），或是给他人派活儿，或是制造狗屁工作给他人。
The book mentions various "bullshit jobs," such as "flunky," which exists to make another person look important or feel important; "duct taper," which exists to address some flaw or defect within the organization, even though these flaws and defects are created by the organization itself; and "task master," who either assigns work to others or creates "bullshit jobs" for others.

很多人纳闷，资本家干嘛雇人做“狗屁工作”，把劳动力都给省了，不就省去人力成本吗？格雷伯从更高的角度予以分析，他认为资本家发明“狗屁工作”的终极目的是维持秩序稳定。“这里的问题显然不是从经济学角度可以解释的，我们需要转向道德领域和政治领域。”
Many people wonder why capitalists hire people to do "bullshit jobs" instead of saving labor costs. Graeber analyzes this from a higher perspective, arguing that the ultimate purpose of inventing "bullshit jobs" is to maintain order and stability. "The issue here is clearly not something that can be explained from an economic perspective; we need to turn to the moral and political realms."

《年会不能停！》为我们补充了狗屁工作存在的微观视角。随着分工的不断细化，职场分工体系更加专业化、模块化、流水线化，反而造成单位层级结构的架屋叠床、冗余繁琐，大部分员工成为流水线上一个细小的螺丝钉，他只做属于他这一环节的某个机械性的工作。各人自扫门前雪，莫管他家瓦上霜，不同部门之间的推诿时有发生，如果原来某个工作是有人在做的，一旦他离职，鲜有员工愿意主动顶下他的工作，那么就需要重新招聘一个人填充岗位。而事实上，万一这个岗位没有人填充，几乎不影响公司的正常运转。电影中，发现胡建林是顶包上来的马杰，担心胡建林工作中露出马脚，就揽下了胡建林的活儿，缺一个胡建林跟没缺一样。退一步说，真的人手不足，也有大把用工成本更低的外包人员可以支配使用。
"The Annual Meeting Must Go On!" provides us with a micro perspective on the existence of "bullshit jobs." With the continuous refinement of division of labor, the workplace division system has become more specialized, modular, and assembly line-like, resulting in a hierarchical structure that is overly complex and redundant. Most employees become small cogs in the assembly line, performing only mechanical tasks specific to their role. People tend to mind their own business and avoid taking on others' responsibilities, leading to frequent shirking between departments. If a job was previously done by someone who leaves, few employees are willing to take over, necessitating the hiring of a new person to fill the position. In fact, if the position remains unfilled, it hardly affects the company's normal operations. In the movie, Ma Jie, who discovered that Hu Jianlin was a stand-in, took over Hu Jianlin's work to prevent him from making mistakes, showing that the absence of Hu Jianlin made no difference. Moreover, if there is indeed a shortage of personnel, there are plenty of lower-cost outsourced workers available.

就像电影中潘怡然所吐槽的，“这大企业的大部分人啊，都不知道自己在忙什么”，工作越是细分，很多打工人专注自己的一亩三分地，人浮于事的概率就越大。这并不意味着清闲。在KPI的倒逼下，“分派者”会给下属们找出点事儿做，加之部门之间泾渭分明、大量工作由需要相互协作，工作流程安排不当、管理层次过多，打工人需要将时间花费在各种琐碎环节与对接中，尔后再用各种职场黑话给无意义的工作稍微包装下。“后台数据管理是什么意思？”“管理后台数据。”“我是负责优化程序架构。”“程序架构优化呗。”
As Pan Yiran complains in the movie, "Most people in these big companies don't even know what they're busy with." The more work is subdivided, the more workers focus on their own small area, increasing the likelihood of redundancy. This does not mean they are idle. Under the pressure of KPIs, "task masters" find things for their subordinates to do. Additionally, with clear boundaries between departments and a lot of work requiring collaboration, improper workflow arrangements and excessive management layers force workers to spend time on various trivial tasks and coordination. They then use workplace jargon to slightly dress up meaningless work. "What does backend data management mean?" "Managing backend data." "I am responsible for optimizing the program architecture." "Optimizing the program architecture, of course."

狗屁工作让很多打工人得以养家糊口，却不能因此否认狗屁工作给打工人带来的痛苦体验。格雷伯将狗屁工作视为“精神暴力”，它既违背人建立意义感的普遍诉求，也占有、剥夺打工人的时间。这也是董润年说的：当下人人喊累，其实我们不是惧怕“累”，而是因为我们看不到“价值”。
Bullshit jobs allow many workers to support their families, but this does not negate the painful experience that bullshit jobs bring to workers. Graeber views bullshit jobs as "spiritual violence," which not only goes against people's general pursuit of a sense of meaning but also occupies and deprives workers of their time. This is also what Dong Runian said: Nowadays, everyone complains about being tired. In fact, we are not afraid of being "tired," but because we cannot see "value."

福利与“福报” Benefits and "Blessings"

胡建林也被总公司的福利震惊到了。每一层都有茶水间，茶水间有各种免费的零食与饮品，打工人累了可以来这里休息一下；餐厅里有西餐，有重庆风味和广东风味的中餐，有日式料理；总部有配备齐全、宽敞明亮的健身房，还有一个偌大的室内游泳池；职级越高的员工享受的福利越多，管理层有专门的休息区，能享受桑拿按摩服务……这一切福利让胡建林大开眼界，“这么舒服，这还是上班吗？”
Hu Jianlin was also shocked by the benefits of the head office. Each floor has a pantry with various free snacks and drinks, where workers can take a break when they are tired; the cafeteria offers Western food, Chongqing and Guangdong-style Chinese food, and Japanese cuisine; the headquarters has a fully equipped, spacious, and bright gym, as well as a large indoor swimming pool; the higher the employee's rank, the more benefits they enjoy, with the management having a dedicated rest area where they can enjoy sauna and massage services... All these benefits opened Hu Jianlin's eyes, "Is this still work with such comfort?"

镜头一调转，明明外面天早就黑了，办公区还有很多员工在加班。胡建林不解地问，“不是八小时工作制吗？”马杰回应道，“大家都是自愿加班的，绝对没有人强迫。九点之后打车可以报销，还有加班费，玩电脑还不用花自个儿家电钱，在哪不是待着”。
The camera pans, and although it is clearly dark outside, many employees are still working overtime in the office area. Hu Jianlin asked in confusion, "Isn't it an eight-hour workday?" Ma Jie responded, "Everyone works overtime voluntarily, no one is forced. After nine o'clock, taxi fares can be reimbursed, and there is overtime pay. You don't have to spend your own electricity at home to use the computer, so why not stay here?"

这一下子就拆穿曾几何时令人艳羡的互联网大厂“福利”的真面目：给打工人尽可能多的福利，是希望打工人在公司停留的时间更长一些，最好是能够将打工人一直留在办公楼里，这时也没有所谓的加班，因为压根就不存在真正的下班。而这种高强度的工作制度还曾被称为“福报”。
This immediately exposes the true nature of the once-envied "benefits" of big internet companies: providing workers with as many benefits as possible is to hope that they will stay in the company longer, ideally keeping them in the office building all the time. In this case, there is no so-called overtime because there is no real off-duty time. And this high-intensity work system was once called "blessings."

不过，比起“996”，打工人更怕的是失业。电影中马杰的状态，令银幕外的打工人心有戚戚——他在集团内网中的签名是“加班是一种彰显工作态度的方式”；他随叫随到，“下班后返回公司50次”；他“情义无双”，“无偿加班1000天”；他是“假日天使”，“全年无休”；他还是“加班之王”，“连续加班1500天”……
However, compared to "996", workers are more afraid of unemployment. The state of Ma Jie in the movie resonates with workers outside the screen—his signature on the company's intranet is "Overtime is a way to demonstrate work attitude"; he is always on call, "returning to the company 50 times after work"; he is "unparalleled in loyalty", "working overtime for 1000 days without pay"; he is the "holiday angel", "working all year round without rest"; he is also the "king of overtime", "working continuously for 1500 days"...

害怕失业、全年无休的马杰（白客 饰） Ma Jie (played by Bai Ke), who is afraid of unemployment and works all year round

马杰这么拼，因为他上有老、下有小，他害怕失业。为了保住工作，他谨小慎微，妥协保守，唯唯诺诺，也甘愿吃亏，并以“优绩主义”的理论自我洗脑：领导之所以成为领导，一定是他们有过人之处；别人抢走他辛辛苦苦做的工作，一定是因为别人比他会汇报，所以成果就得属于别人……
Ma Jie works so hard because he has elderly parents and young children to support, and he is afraid of losing his job. To keep his job, he is cautious, compromising, conservative, and willing to suffer losses. He even brainwashes himself with the theory of "performance-oriented": the reason why leaders become leaders must be because they have exceptional qualities; if others take away the work he has done painstakingly, it must be because they are better at reporting, so the results should belong to others...

虽然社交媒体上时不时有年轻人整顿职场的说法，但现实不是爽剧。马杰心中一直隐藏着“仰天大笑出门去，我辈岂是蓬蒿人”的呐喊，但他总是选择憋回去；00后的潘怡然是这一代年轻人的“嘴替”，总能一针见血发现职场中的种种不合理，可虽然转正一直是公司在画大饼，她外包工作一做就是几年，就像公司一块砖哪里需要哪里搬；电影中笑果最为强烈的胡建林记人名的桥段，则笑中带泪地描摹出当代打工人内心深处的失业恐惧……
Although there are occasional talks of young people reforming the workplace on social media, reality is not a feel-good drama. Ma Jie always hides a shout in his heart, "Laughing to the sky, how can we be mere weeds," but he always chooses to hold it back; Pan Yiran, a post-00s generation, is the "spokesperson" for this generation of young people, always able to pinpoint various workplace injustices. However, although the company keeps promising her a permanent position, she has been doing outsourced work for years, like a brick that the company moves wherever needed; the most humorous scene in the movie, where Hu Jianlin remembers names, depicts the deep-seated fear of unemployment among contemporary workers with laughter and tears...

人与螺丝钉 People and Screws

空降总公司后，胡建林的首要任务是，帮助公司完成被命名为“广进”的裁员计划，因为“裁员”与“财源”同音。当公司经营不善，为了确保公司现金流，需要“降本增效”，裁员成为降低公司支出成本最立竿见影的手段。
After being parachuted into the head office, Hu Jianlin's primary task was to help the company complete the layoff plan named "Guangjin," because "layoff" sounds the same as "financial source" in Chinese. When the company is not performing well, to ensure cash flow, it needs to "reduce costs and increase efficiency," and layoffs become the most immediate means to reduce company expenses.

裁员本身也许不是问题，但是否非裁员不可，要裁掉哪些人，如何对待那些被裁掉的人，却颇有讲究。不同的处理方法，能鲜明体现出公司对待员工的态度——是以人为本，还是只是将员工视为可以随意替代、用完即弃的螺丝钉？
Layoffs themselves may not be the issue, but whether they are absolutely necessary, who to lay off, and how to treat those who are laid off are quite delicate matters. Different handling methods can clearly reflect the company's attitude towards its employees—whether it is people-oriented or just sees employees as replaceable, disposable cogs.

影片有意将1998年时年轻的胡建林在国营工厂经历的下岗潮，与2019年时成为人力资源部领导的他参与的裁员工作进行对比。电影多少有些美化1998年时国营工厂的工作氛围——彼时的下岗潮颇为残酷，但发展效率低下、技术附加值低、产品竞争力差等是当时很多国营工厂的共同特点，而非像片中呈现的那样只有众志成城。
The film intentionally contrasts Hu Jianlin's experience of the wave of layoffs in a state-owned factory in 1998 with his involvement in layoff work as a human resources leader in 2019. The movie somewhat romanticizes the working atmosphere of state-owned factories in 1998—although the wave of layoffs was quite brutal at the time, inefficiency, low technological added value, and poor product competitiveness were common characteristics of many state-owned factories back then, rather than the united front depicted in the film.

不过，国营工厂时代，职工的归属感和幸福感很强，工厂办社会，每个职工都是集体中的一员，也能感受到集体的温暖。胡建林在国营工厂一干就是20年，虽然工厂已经转制，但工人们仍保留着国营时期互帮互助、有情有义的人情关系，职工是一个个具体的“人”，而非无足轻重的“螺丝钉”。
However, during the era of state-owned factories, employees had a strong sense of belonging and happiness. The factory managed social affairs, and every employee was a member of the collective, feeling the warmth of the group. Hu Jianlin worked in the state-owned factory for 20 years. Although the factory has since been restructured, the workers still maintain the mutual help and emotional bonds from the state-owned period, treating each other as specific "people" rather than insignificant "cogs."

胡建林对“优化”的认知与总公司完全相悖：从企业视角看，“优化”就是裁员，但胡建林认为“优化”是个好词，于是帮原本拟定被裁掉的35+技术骨干升职加薪。胡建林说：“工厂和工人，那就跟两口子过日子一样，得相互体谅，不能说工厂发展越来越好了，然后嫌工人年老色衰，始乱终弃，就是惦记那个年轻的”。
Hu Jianlin's understanding of "optimization" is completely contrary to that of the head office: from the enterprise's perspective, "optimization" means layoffs, but Hu Jianlin believes "optimization" is a positive term, so he helped promote and raise the salaries of the 35+ technical backbones who were originally slated to be laid off. Hu Jianlin said, "The factory and the workers are like a couple living together; they need to understand each other. You can't say the factory is getting better and then abandon the workers because they are getting old and unattractive, just thinking about the young ones."

当标准件厂300号人也要被裁掉时，胡建林更是强烈反对。他与提出裁员计划的公司执行副总裁（李乃文 饰）价值观截然不同。副总裁将员工视为螺丝钉，甚至是“摩擦力”，“时代的列车开过去，总会有人在车轮子底下，增加摩擦力”。但胡建林的观点是，公司要节省支出可以从其他地方省钱，裁员的话“那是多少人的饭碗”，他的建议是“咱们可以不裁员，所有人都降一点工资，大家伙一起齐心协力，动力也上来了，产能也上来了”。副总裁则斥责胡建林的想法是“陈腐的思维”。
When the 300th employee of the standard parts factory was about to be laid off, Hu Jianlin strongly opposed it. He had completely different values from the company's executive vice president (played by Li Naiwen), who proposed the layoff plan. The vice president viewed employees as screws, or even "friction," saying, "When the train of the times moves forward, there will always be people under the wheels, increasing friction." However, Hu Jianlin believed that the company could save money from other areas instead of laying off employees, as "that's the livelihood of many people." His suggestion was, "We don't have to lay off employees; everyone can take a small pay cut, work together with one heart, and both motivation and productivity will increase." The vice president criticized Hu Jianlin's idea as "outdated thinking."

电影有个光明的结局，标准件厂300个员工的饭碗保住了，胡建林到厂里担任副厂长。问题是，“广进”计划此前已经裁掉5700人，他们被视为“螺丝钉”甚至“摩擦力”，如此轻而易举被公司舍弃。
The movie has a bright ending, with the jobs of 300 employees at the standard parts factory being saved, and Hu Jianlin becoming the deputy director of the factory. The problem is, the "Guangjin" plan had already laid off 5,700 people, who were seen as "screws" or even "friction," and were easily discarded by the company.

电影中技术大佬原本被列入裁员名单，因为他年龄达到35岁。这自然让人联想到，不少互联网大厂裁员时总是优先裁掉35岁以上的员工。真的是35岁以上的员工能力不行吗？并不见得，他们往往积累更多经验。真相是，企业往往把员工当成可以替换的“螺丝钉”，因为年轻的新人更“耐用”、更“廉价”，打打鸡血，可以每天“996”，这对于35岁以上的职员来说就有些吃不消。并且35岁以上的职员因为工作年限、职业晋升等原因，公司需要支付更高的人力成本，而刚毕业的大学生往往都能接受比较低的起薪。《互联网人才流动报告2020》显示，19家互联网头部企业的人才平均年龄为29.6岁，最低的平均年龄为27岁。他们曾是“人力资源”，为大厂奉献青春，35岁前是“人力资源”，35岁之后却被视为“人力成本”，成为公司发展的“摩擦力”。
In the movie, a tech expert was originally on the layoff list because he was 35 years old. This naturally reminds people that many internet giants often prioritize laying off employees over 35. Is it really that employees over 35 are less capable? Not necessarily; they often have more accumulated experience. The truth is, companies often treat employees as replaceable "screws" because younger newcomers are more "durable" and "cheaper," can be highly motivated, and can work "996" every day. This is hard for employees over 35 to handle. Moreover, employees over 35 require higher labor costs due to their years of service and career advancement, while recent graduates often accept relatively low starting salaries. The "2020 Internet Talent Flow Report" shows that the average age of talent in 19 leading internet companies is 29.6 years, with the lowest average age being 27. They were once "human resources," dedicating their youth to big companies, but after 35, they are seen as "labor costs" and become "friction" in the company's development.

这样的用人导向，短视、冷漠、无情，却颇为流行。很多打工人并非不能接受公司经营困难时的裁员，只是他们无法接受自己被裁时没有被当成“人”来尊重来对待，用完即弃，甚至赔偿金都要斗智斗勇才能拿到。
This kind of employment orientation is short-sighted, cold, and ruthless, yet quite popular. Many workers can accept layoffs when the company is in financial difficulty, but they cannot accept not being treated as "people" with respect when they are laid off, being discarded after use, and even having to fight for their severance pay.

进而言之，电影中的“年会”，究竟是员工以“人”的身份，参与的一场人人身份平等、可以自由吐槽的狂欢party，还是打工人以“螺丝钉”的身份，被迫参与“情感劳动”，讨领导欢心，听公司画大饼：取决于公司以何种价值观看待与对待员工。
Furthermore, the "annual meeting" in the movie, is it a carnival party where employees participate as "people" with equal status and can freely complain, or is it a forced "emotional labor" where workers participate as "screws" to please the leaders and listen to the company's grand promises? It depends on the company's values and how it views and treats its employees.

《年会不能停！》剧照 Still from "The Annual Meeting Must Go On!"

《年会不能停！》以嬉笑怒骂的方式对职场中的种种怪现状，进行酣畅淋漓地吐槽，准确击中当代打工人的痛点。电影给出大光明结局：在董事长“主持大局”下，集团里的坏人得到严惩，主人公们好人好报，工人保住饭碗……
"The Annual Meeting Must Go On!" humorously and satirically critiques various absurdities in the workplace, hitting the pain points of contemporary workers. The film offers a bright and happy ending: under the chairman's "leadership," the bad guys in the group are severely punished, the protagonists receive their due rewards, and the workers keep their jobs...

但回到现实，职场环境与打工人生存处境的改善，显然不能寄望于“大人物”，而应寄望于法律——把劳动法落实到位，寄望于规则——让打工人拥有明确的制度预期。职场的“以人为本”无法单靠情怀与口号实现，法律与规则才能保障打工人的基本尊严。
But back to reality, the improvement of the workplace environment and the survival conditions of workers clearly cannot rely on "big figures," but should depend on the law—implementing labor laws properly, and on rules—giving workers clear institutional expectations. The "people-oriented" approach in the workplace cannot be achieved solely through sentiment and slogans; only laws and rules can guarantee the basic dignity of workers.

图片编辑：张颖 Photo Editor: Zhang Ying

校对：张亮亮 Proofreader: Zhang Liangliang