Imagine this: It’s 11 PM, and you’re about to go to bed when your phone rings. It’s your boss, urgently asking for a report that needs to be ready by the morning. Reluctantly, you drag yourself out of bed, switch on your laptop, and get to work. Sounds familiar? Well, many of us have been there. Whether you’re in the IT sector, healthcare or emergency services, the media industry, or working for MNCs in India, it has almost become almost normal to work beyond the office hours.
But here’s something interesting—if you were in Australia, this scenario might just play out differently. Once your office hours are over, you can legally ignore those late-night work calls and texts. This is all thanks to the new Right to Disconnect law designed to curb work-related emails and calls creeping into personal time.
Decoded: Australia’s Right to Disconnect Law
The Right to Disconnect law is a regulation that empowers employees to ignore work-related communications—be it emails, text messages, or phone calls—outside of their official work hours. The law was introduced to combat the increasing intrusion of work into personal lives, a problem that has intensified since the Covid-19 pandemic and blurred the boundaries between work and home. In Australia, this law applies to all employees.
By enacting this law, Australia joins about two dozen other countries, mainly in Europe and Latin America, that have similar regulations. France was one of the pioneers in implementing its right to disconnect in 2017.
India’s Right to Disconnect Bill: A status update
This raises the question: Can a similar law be implemented in India? Surprisingly, a bill named Right to Disconnect was also introduced in India. The bill aimed to provide employees with the right to not respond to work-related calls and emails after working hours, thereby maintaining a boundary between personal and professional life. The bill, introduced by MP Supriya Sule, however, has yet to gain significant legislative traction.
The great Indian debate about long working hours
Well, the big question is: Why hasn’t this bill made any progress so far? Well, the reason is quite blatant: Overworking has become deeply ingrained in many sectors across India. Be it in the healthcare industry, emergency services, journalism, or IT, employees often work overtime and even on their off-days. The idea that work should take precedence has been deeply embedded in the Indian work culture. Here are some recent developments that reflect the continuous push towards longer work hours.
Narayan Murthy’s 70-hour work week proposal: Last year, the Infosys co-founder Narayan Murthy suggested that Indian youth should be prepared to work up to 70 hours a week to accelerate the country’s growth. This sparked heated debates among both young professionals and seasoned veterans. While some supported the idea, others raised concerns about the long-term effects on health and work-life balance.
Nilesh Shah’s 12-hour workday proposal: Reiterating Naryan Murthy’s views, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company’s Managing Director, Nilesh Shah, suggested that for India to grow more rapidly, a generation of people needs to embrace a 12-hour workday culture.
Recommendations of The Economic Survey: In July, the Economic Survey presented by the finance ministry emphasized longer overtime working hours with reduced wages. It also underscored the need to increase the ‘monetizable time’ of Indian workers while downplaying the reduction in overtime wages. The Economic Survey, citing a 2023 article by Delhi-based think tank named Prosperiti Insights, argues that relaxing work hour restrictions could boost workers’ earnings. The article highlights that under the Factories Act, the key law governing working hours and conditions in India, workers are limited to 48 hours per week and a maximum of 10.5 hours per day, including rest periods. While workers could potentially earn more by working 60 hours a week, Section 65 of the Act restricts overtime to 75 hours per quarter, limiting their earnings. The survey suggests that these laws should be made more flexible to allow additional overtime, similar to practices in other countries.
Attempts at Amending the Factories Act: These recommendations came at a time when the government has been making moves to increase the permissible work hours by relaxing provisions of the Factories Act. In fact, last year, both Tamil Nadu and Karnataka proposed the amendment of the Factories Act to allow up to 12-hour work shifts. However, Tamil Nadu was forced to withdraw the legislation following protests from labour unions. Also, a draft bill by the Congress government in Karnataka proposed increasing the work hours for those in the IT sector to 14 hours a day. The proposal elicited strong reactions, as the Shops and Establishment Act, which governs working hours in the IT sector, states that workers cannot be made to work more than nine hours a day and 48 hours a week.
Given these examples, implementing a law similar to Australia’s Right to Disconnect in India seems challenging.
How Overworking Affects Productivity
Estimates suggest that the average salary for a fresher in India ranges between Rs. 3 lakh to Rs. 5 lakh per annum, with an average growth rate of around 15 per cent a year. These employees typically work 8 to 9 hours a day. If working hours are increased, will salaries rise accordingly? In many cases, employees who work overtime do not receive extra remuneration. Thus, it’s likely that extending working hours without fair compensation could lead to further dissatisfaction.
Moreover, the impact on mental and physical health could be significant. According to the World Health Organization, around 15 percent of working adults suffer from anxiety, depression, and other mental health disorders, affecting their daily lives. These factors can negatively impact productivity as well, if working hours are further increased. Here is a look at how long working hours can affect output.
Decreased Efficiency: Working beyond your capacity decreases efficiency. Tasks that usually take a short time might start taking longer, and mistakes become more common, requiring additional time to correct.
Burnout: Overworking can lead to burnout—a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress. Burnout significantly reduces motivation and engagement, making it hard to complete even simple tasks.
Reduced Creativity: Creativity flourishes when the mind is relaxed and has time to wander. Overworking stifles creativity because the brain is too focused on just getting through tasks rather than thinking innovatively.
Work-Life Imbalance: Overworking disrupts the balance between work and personal life, leading to dissatisfaction and resentment, which can spill over into work, further reducing overall productivity.
Increasing work hours: A fine act of balancing between growth and well-being
As the debate continues over whether Indian employees should have the right to disconnect after office hours, the implications of extending work hours must be carefully weighed. On one hand, increased work hours could significantly boost the country’s growth and provide greater earning opportunities for workers and on the other, it may lead to decreased productivity and contribute to employee burnout. The balance between economic benefits and the well-being of workers is crucial. As our government considers these factors, it must ensure that any change in work hour policies do not come at the expense of employee health and productivity.
But here’s something interesting—if you were in Australia, this scenario might just play out differently. Once your office hours are over, you can legally ignore those late-night work calls and texts. This is all thanks to the new Right to Disconnect law designed to curb work-related emails and calls creeping into personal time.
Decoded: Australia’s Right to Disconnect Law
The Right to Disconnect law is a regulation that empowers employees to ignore work-related communications—be it emails, text messages, or phone calls—outside of their official work hours. The law was introduced to combat the increasing intrusion of work into personal lives, a problem that has intensified since the Covid-19 pandemic and blurred the boundaries between work and home. In Australia, this law applies to all employees.
By enacting this law, Australia joins about two dozen other countries, mainly in Europe and Latin America, that have similar regulations. France was one of the pioneers in implementing its right to disconnect in 2017.
India’s Right to Disconnect Bill: A status update
This raises the question: Can a similar law be implemented in India? Surprisingly, a bill named Right to Disconnect was also introduced in India. The bill aimed to provide employees with the right to not respond to work-related calls and emails after working hours, thereby maintaining a boundary between personal and professional life. The bill, introduced by MP Supriya Sule, however, has yet to gain significant legislative traction.
The great Indian debate about long working hours
Well, the big question is: Why hasn’t this bill made any progress so far? Well, the reason is quite blatant: Overworking has become deeply ingrained in many sectors across India. Be it in the healthcare industry, emergency services, journalism, or IT, employees often work overtime and even on their off-days. The idea that work should take precedence has been deeply embedded in the Indian work culture. Here are some recent developments that reflect the continuous push towards longer work hours.
Narayan Murthy’s 70-hour work week proposal: Last year, the Infosys co-founder Narayan Murthy suggested that Indian youth should be prepared to work up to 70 hours a week to accelerate the country’s growth. This sparked heated debates among both young professionals and seasoned veterans. While some supported the idea, others raised concerns about the long-term effects on health and work-life balance.
Nilesh Shah’s 12-hour workday proposal: Reiterating Naryan Murthy’s views, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company’s Managing Director, Nilesh Shah, suggested that for India to grow more rapidly, a generation of people needs to embrace a 12-hour workday culture.
Recommendations of The Economic Survey: In July, the Economic Survey presented by the finance ministry emphasized longer overtime working hours with reduced wages. It also underscored the need to increase the ‘monetizable time’ of Indian workers while downplaying the reduction in overtime wages. The Economic Survey, citing a 2023 article by Delhi-based think tank named Prosperiti Insights, argues that relaxing work hour restrictions could boost workers’ earnings. The article highlights that under the Factories Act, the key law governing working hours and conditions in India, workers are limited to 48 hours per week and a maximum of 10.5 hours per day, including rest periods. While workers could potentially earn more by working 60 hours a week, Section 65 of the Act restricts overtime to 75 hours per quarter, limiting their earnings. The survey suggests that these laws should be made more flexible to allow additional overtime, similar to practices in other countries.
Attempts at Amending the Factories Act: These recommendations came at a time when the government has been making moves to increase the permissible work hours by relaxing provisions of the Factories Act. In fact, last year, both Tamil Nadu and Karnataka proposed the amendment of the Factories Act to allow up to 12-hour work shifts. However, Tamil Nadu was forced to withdraw the legislation following protests from labour unions. Also, a draft bill by the Congress government in Karnataka proposed increasing the work hours for those in the IT sector to 14 hours a day. The proposal elicited strong reactions, as the Shops and Establishment Act, which governs working hours in the IT sector, states that workers cannot be made to work more than nine hours a day and 48 hours a week.
Given these examples, implementing a law similar to Australia’s Right to Disconnect in India seems challenging.
How Overworking Affects Productivity
Estimates suggest that the average salary for a fresher in India ranges between Rs. 3 lakh to Rs. 5 lakh per annum, with an average growth rate of around 15 per cent a year. These employees typically work 8 to 9 hours a day. If working hours are increased, will salaries rise accordingly? In many cases, employees who work overtime do not receive extra remuneration. Thus, it’s likely that extending working hours without fair compensation could lead to further dissatisfaction.
Moreover, the impact on mental and physical health could be significant. According to the World Health Organization, around 15 percent of working adults suffer from anxiety, depression, and other mental health disorders, affecting their daily lives. These factors can negatively impact productivity as well, if working hours are further increased. Here is a look at how long working hours can affect output.
Decreased Efficiency: Working beyond your capacity decreases efficiency. Tasks that usually take a short time might start taking longer, and mistakes become more common, requiring additional time to correct.
Burnout: Overworking can lead to burnout—a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress. Burnout significantly reduces motivation and engagement, making it hard to complete even simple tasks.
Reduced Creativity: Creativity flourishes when the mind is relaxed and has time to wander. Overworking stifles creativity because the brain is too focused on just getting through tasks rather than thinking innovatively.
Work-Life Imbalance: Overworking disrupts the balance between work and personal life, leading to dissatisfaction and resentment, which can spill over into work, further reducing overall productivity.
Increasing work hours: A fine act of balancing between growth and well-being
As the debate continues over whether Indian employees should have the right to disconnect after office hours, the implications of extending work hours must be carefully weighed. On one hand, increased work hours could significantly boost the country’s growth and provide greater earning opportunities for workers and on the other, it may lead to decreased productivity and contribute to employee burnout. The balance between economic benefits and the well-being of workers is crucial. As our government considers these factors, it must ensure that any change in work hour policies do not come at the expense of employee health and productivity.
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