Nethra Sailesh, Pune
Several IT firms have allegedly appealed to the Karnataka state government to increase the daily working hours for IT and ITES sector employees. The proposal suggests legally increasing the working hours to 14 hours or alternatively, 12 hours per day plus two hours of overtime.
Karnataka State IT/ITeS/BPO Employees Union (KITU) has reported that the Karnataka government has plans to amend the Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishment Act. This existing bill only allows for 10 hours of work per day, including overtime. The proposed amendments could entail companies changing from a three-shift system to a two-shift system which could lead to huge loss of employment.
On Monday, Karnataka Labour Minister Santosh Lad clarified that the bill was passed onto them due to pressure from IT industries and assured that it was not a plan issued by the IT Minister Priyank Kharge.
Kharge himself clarified later that a bill was brought in by the Labour Department and further discussions are still underway. He assured that the media would be informed in due time about upcoming developments.
However, these statements came only after public outcry against the amendments.
KITU has labeled it as an attack on basic worker rights and has slated the adverse effect it has on employee well-being. They also added that it disrupts work-life balance.
Dr Sudhir Kumar took to X to highlight the negative effects of 14-hour work days which ranges from risk of heart attack, stroke, cancer, hypertension, diabetes and could even lead to premature death.
A day after the news broke out, Ashish Aggarwal, Vice President, and Head of Public Policy National Association of Software Companies (NASSCOM) attested that it has not advocated for this new mandate and advocates for the standard 48-hour work week.
However, there still seems to be doubts surrounding what exactly the bill entails. Official IT sources as reported by the New Indian Express said that the aim of the amendment is to boost sunrise sectors and promote the state’s overall development. Furthermore, they said that the mandate won’t be applicable to all IT companies but only a few verticals.
Nonetheless, this is not the first time a hefty workweek schedule has been brought up into mainstream conversation.
In 2010, Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, claimed that in order to be successful one must put in 80-100-hour weeks and “work like hell”. Last year, Narayan Murthy came under fire for suggesting that youngsters ought to work for 70 hours per week.