Forget the fantasy of a four-day workweek. Or even the quaint regularity of the traditional five-day week.
Hustle culture is back in San Francisco: That means six days in the office, at least for employees of hard-charging startup LatchBio.
The 3-year-old company, which makes data analysis software for biotech firms, has two posted job listings noting that employees work six days a week (Monday through Saturday) from its Mission Bay headquarters.
In a job description for a senior software engineer, with an annual salary range of $140,000 to $220,000, LatchBio says its workplace has “complete transparency—all meetings are open to every member of the team.”
A post seeking an account executive—which pays a base salary of $60,000 to $72,500, plus the same amount in expected commissions if the worker hits sales targets—links to a page on the organizational platform Notion with more details. Among the listed benefits are an unlimited PTO policy and 12+ meals provided weekly. The Notion page says the role would be a fit for “rockstars who eventually want to be founders, chief revenue officers or world-class sales people within a tech company.”
The decision to tack on another day of work has led to foreseeable criticism on social media, but the concept hinges on the idea that long hours and weekend work are critical ingredients in a startup’s success. High-profile tech investors like Michael Moritz, Jason Calacanis, and Keith Rabois have publicly expressed admiration for the 9-9-6 work schedule (9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week) typical in China. (Moritz is chairman of The Standard.)
Meanwhile, tech companies have been cajoling and pressuring workers to show up in person, and many AI startups are snapping up office space and asking staff to move to San Francisco. IRL work has made such a comeback post-pandemic that hacker houses are becoming popular again, particularly in an enclave dubbed “Cerebral Valley.”
But mandating a six-day workweek goes a step further at a time when many organizations have contemplated truncating down to four days, citing mental health benefits and higher efficiency.
However, there are a few notable exceptions. Samsung this year mandated a six-day workweek for executives after posting lackluster financial results. Greece recently became the first European Union nation to introduce a six-day workweek for some industries, in an effort to boost employment and productivity.
In response to a question on LinkedIn, LatchBio CEO Alfredo Andere confirmed the six-day schedule and wrote that the move was a “teamwide decision.” He did not respond to questions about the reasons and expected results of the shift.
LatchBio has about 22 employees, according to its job postings. It has raised around $33 million from investors that include Lux Capital and Coatue, according to the research firm Pitchbook.