Not profits over people

One of the greatest tragedies of human life is when a parent outlives a child. That gut wrenching pain of unimaginable loss screamed from Anita Augustine’s letter, mother to Anna Sebastian Perayil, the 26 year-old chartered accountant who passed away purportedly due to overwork and exhaustion. The outcry has compelled the central government to launch a probe. Toxic work culture is not new in India, and you don’t have to work in the ‘Big 4’ of any sector to experience it. The practice of working younger staff to the bone is an unfortunate reality. One that is often held up as a rite of passage, condoned and encouraged by seniors, and willingly overlooked by the management.

Being a workaholic is no longer a badge of honour. If you wear it, you do so willingly — a personal choice of your time allocation in the day and in your life. Today, it’s become exceedingly important to strive for a work-life balance. Two decades ago, perhaps it wasn’t a necessity; today, the requirement of a healthy, balanced life is the need of the hour. We spend more time in transit delayed by traffic, our daily responsibilities seem never ending, and the proliferation of nuclear families and single-unit households mean greater burden of domestic chores. Add to that are distractions and other demands on our time. Life has never been so “busy”, cluttered with various kinds of noise. Simultaneously, we are more conscious of our mental and physical well-being than ever before.

The need to work effectively within the allocated work hours is essential from an efficiency and organisational point of view as much as it’s paramount for health. Work is seldom a life and death situation, so why do we treat it like one? So, will there never be long work days? Oh, of course! And working long hours is definitely easier in one’s 20s than later in life. Days and nights can spill into one another when there are deadlines. But not every day can be that or should. That’s where the management of a company steps in. There will always be deadlines, targets and goals, and eye on profits, but an altruistic company will always value human capital.

Therefore, when stalwarts of India Inc. back 70-hour work weeks or the IT industry in Karnataka proposes 14-hour work days, it defeats the entire movement towards a balanced work-life. Globally, there is a growing clamour for 4-day work weeks. And obviously, some jobs, professions, and organisations will have excruciating long hours. But does that mean we don’t even try to improve the scenario there? Take the medical fraternity for instance, gruelling long hours are routine both in India and overseas. And while the job itself is extremely demanding, are we to make no attempt to bring in some empathy and compassion for the medical professionals? And then there are exacting jobs that become untenable because of unhealthy office cultures and rogue leadership. Takes me back to my days as a young journalist. Once I had started my day at 5 am reaching the venue for a live show at 6 am. By the time the day was done it was past 10 pm and I was aching to go home. Only to have an editor remark as to why did I even need to go home since I don’t have a family waiting? Or the time when I was called back to work after a 16-hour day — just as I had sat down to eat the first meal of the day. There were uncountable days such as this, and the decision to stick around as long as I did in that job was entirely mine.

An empathetic organisation, however big or small, will be governed with the best interests of its employees in mind. On many occasions, the top bosses wouldn’t want to be bothered by what they deem as HR issues related to work pressures, corporate exploitation, sexual harassment, and so forth, while the HR departments will be titular heads only. Life is inherently unfair and while ethically, corporates must ensure a positive work environment, the reality may be quite different. Which brings me to the matter of choice — if there are no unavoidable compulsions, then walk away from a soul-sucking job. However, if you have no options or finances are stretched or this is a challenge that you have set for yourself, then toil on while keeping an eye out for openings. You don’t have to stay in an exploitative environment. Being part of a “Big Anything” is not worth it. Work instead for a smaller, more humane and kind organisation; your older self will thank you.

The writer is an author and media entrepreneur. Views expressed are personal