Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Jan 9: Taking the debate over work culture and job-related stress and mental health, the Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Chairman S.N. Subrahmanyan has stirred a controversy with his comments suggesting employees should work 90 hours a week and even on Sundays to remain competitive.
A video of his remarks surfaced on internet drawing criticism on the platform. His comments, which emerged during an interaction with employees regarding L&T’s six-day workweek policy, have added fuel to the ongoing debate on work-life balance.
This comes in the wake of similar remarks by Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy, who recently suggested that the youth work 70 hours a week to aid in nation-building, a statement that also faced widespread criticism online.
Subrahmanyan, however, took it further by proposing a 90-hour workweek and questioning employees’ time spent at home. “How long can you stare at your wife?” he asked, urging employees to spend less time at home and prioritise work. Addressing why employees are required to work on Saturdays, Subrahmanyan expressed regret that Sundays couldn’t also be mandated as working days.
“I regret I am not able to make you work on Sundays. If I can make you work on Sundays, I will be more happy because I work on Sundays,” he said. Mr Subrahmanyan then questioned what employees gained from taking time off at home. He said, “What do you do sitting at home? How long can you stare at your wife? How long can the wives stare at their husbands? Get to the office and start working.”
The L&T chief further shared an anecdote to justify his stance. He spoke of a conversation with a Chinese person who said that China could surpass the US because of the country’s strong work ethic. According to Mr Subrahmanyan, the Chinese person said, “Chinese people work 90 hours a week, while Americans work only 50 hours a week.”
Drawing a parallel, Mr Subrahmanyan encouraged L&T employees to follow a similar work regimen. “So, if you want to be on top of the world, you have to work 90 hours a week,” Subrahmanyan asserted.
The video has gone viral and drawn significant backlash. Many netizens criticised Subrahmanyan’s remarks as dismissive of personal lives and work-life balance, particularly his comment about “staring at one’s wife.” Critics pointed out that such statements trivialize employees’ personal well-being and perpetuate a culture of overwork.
The uproar mirrors the response to Murthy’s earlier comments, with users questioning the broader implications of such workplace philosophies and their impact on employee health and productivity.
A strong rebuttal to Mr Subrahmanyan’s 90-hour a week work idea came from the Bollywood star Deepika Padukone, known for her advocacy of mental health. Deepika shared journalist Faye D’Souza’s post about the same and wrote on her Instagram Stories, “Shocking to see people in such senior positions make such statements. #MentalHealthMatters.”
Deepika Padukone had openly shared her battle with depression in 2015, discussing feelings of emptiness and suicidal thoughts. With her family’s support and professional help, she overcame this challenging period. She later founded The Live Love Laugh Foundation to raise awareness about mental health, reduce stigma, and provide resources for those in need. Deepika continues to advocate for mental health and works to create a supportive environment for those struggling.
The video quickly became viral on internet where his comments were widely criticised. Many users compared his statements to Infosys founder Narayana Murthy’s recent call for Indian youth to work 70-hour weeks. “I work in L&T and had to sit through this entire thing, imagine our horror! We blame Narayan Murthy for the 70-hour work week,” wrote a user.
“Another CEO promoting slavery shamelessly,” read another comment. Users also questioned why CEOs, who are highly paid and have different job pressures, expect the same level of commitment from lower-paid employees. “Why don’t companies offer different types of working hours? What if a company had different options? 40 hours a week, 30 hours a week, 50 hours a week, 70 hours a week. More pay for more hours?” asked a user.
Another user, expressing ire, wrote, “L&T is one of the worst when it comes to WLB and also pays peanuts. Even a tier one engineering graduate gets only 35k per month in hand after working for 6.5 days a week in some remote location devoid of even the basic facilities. During the first 12 months after joining, they only give 7 casual leaves. That means you can’t even go home once. More than 90% of campus hires leave the organisation within the first 3 years. 50-60 per cent leave in the first year itself.”
Mr Subrahmanyan’s comments come at a time when mental health and work-life balance have become an important part of the discussion between employers and employees. In July 2024, the death of a 26-year-old Ernst & Young (EY) consultant brought attention to issues concerning work culture and job-related stress.