Narayana Murthy, the co-founder of Infosys, reignited the work-life stability debate earlier this week by suggesting that younger Indians work 70-hour weeks to speed up the nation’s financial development. Whereas his assertion displays an admirable ethos of sacrifice and exhausting work that constructed his personal success, it inadvertently overlooks the realities confronted by massive sections of India’s workforce — ladies.
For a lot of ladies, work doesn’t finish on the workplace. It extends into unpaid caregiving and home tasks at residence, which stay undervalued and unaccounted for in financial policymaking. Murthy’s proposal, whereas well-meaning, dangers alienating half of the potential workforce by ignoring the structural obstacles ladies face.
The Hidden Prices of Caregiving
The numbers inform a stark story. In accordance with the Worldwide Labour Organisation (ILO), over 53 per cent of Indian ladies stay exterior the labour power because of caregiving tasks, in comparison with simply 1.1 per cent of males. This disparity highlights the structural obstacles limiting ladies’s financial participation. Even when ladies enter the workforce, many carry the “double burden” of paid work and unpaid home tasks, leaving them overworked and underappreciated.
Unpaid caregiving is not only a home matter; it’s a important financial driver. A 2023 report by the State Financial institution of India estimated that unpaid work contributes Rs 22.7 lakh crore, roughly 7.5 per cent of India’s GDP. Regardless of its significance, this labour stays invisible in financial calculations, coverage frameworks, and company methods. This oversight perpetuates inequities, making Murthy’s suggestion of prolonged work hours unfeasible for a lot of ladies.
Pandemic Fallout on Ladies’s Employment
The pandemic additional amplified these inequities. A examine by Azim Premji College revealed that girls have been seven occasions extra possible than males to lose jobs in the course of the COVID-19 lockdowns. With colleges closed and households confined to properties, ladies’s unpaid home workload surged dramatically, at the same time as formal employment alternatives dwindled. These setbacks exhibit how precarious ladies’s workforce participation stays, even within the fifth-largest economic system on the earth.
Furthermore, restoration has been gradual. In accordance with the World Financial institution’s Gender Knowledge Portal, as of 2023, India’s feminine labour power participation charge (FLFPR) stood at simply 37 per cent. This falls far beneath the worldwide common of 49 per cent, rating India one hundred and sixty fifth out of 187 international locations globally. Policymakers and enterprise leaders should recognise that addressing these gendered challenges is not only a matter of equity however a prerequisite for sustainable financial development.
Difficult the Productiveness Fable
Murthy’s suggestion rests on the idea that productiveness is immediately proportional to hours labored. Nevertheless, international proof debunks this notion. Scandinavian international locations, with their shorter workweeks and strong social security nets, persistently rank excessive on productiveness indices. As an example, Norway boasts one of many shortest common workweeks at simply 27 hours, but it ranks because the second-most productive nation globally. These nations present that effectivity stems from good insurance policies and wholesome work environments — not merely from longer hours.
India’s inflexible work tradition typically penalises ladies for his or her caregiving roles. A 2022 LinkedIn survey revealed that 72 per cent of working ladies in India declined jobs missing versatile work choices, and 70 per cent have both stop or thought of quitting because of inadequate flexibility. Moreover, 88 per cent of ladies who sought versatile work confronted pay cuts, and 37 per cent had their requests denied.
Murthy’s imaginative and prescient of longer work hours ignores these realities. As an alternative of calling for extra hours, company leaders ought to deal with designing workplaces that assist productiveness by way of inclusivity.
Rethinking Workplaces
India’s financial future depends upon workplaces that worth inclusivity as a lot as productiveness. Versatile work insurance policies and hybrid fashions usually are not luxuries — they’re requirements. Ladies balancing caregiving and careers want environments that don’t penalise them for his or her twin burden.
Offering childcare assist at workplaces, for example, is not only an HR coverage; it’s a enterprise crucial that reduces attrition and encourages workforce retention. A examine by the World Financial institution discovered that employer-supported childcare considerably improves productiveness and worker satisfaction.
Equally, the introduction of shared parental depart may very well be transformative. Encouraging males to take part in caregiving duties not solely relieves the burden on ladies but in addition begins to dismantle long-standing gender norms.
Consequence-based work cultures — the place efficiency is measured by outcomes, not hours logged — can shift the main focus from presenteeism to precise productiveness. That is notably essential in a rustic the place lengthy hours typically masquerade as dedication.
Finally, rethinking workplaces just isn’t about giving particular therapy to ladies however about recognising {that a} thriving workforce depends upon addressing the distinctive obstacles they face.
The Financial Crucial
Investing in ladies’s workforce participation is not only a social good — it’s an financial necessity. McKinsey estimates that closing the gender hole in India’s workforce may add $770 billion to the GDP by 2025. Analysis additionally reveals that numerous workplaces outperform their homogenous counterparts. And firms with extra ladies in management roles report increased profitability. The financial case for gender fairness is obvious; but, attaining this requires systemic modifications that allow ladies to beat current obstacles.
The Path Ahead
Murthy’s name for a hard-working India resonates with the nation’s aspirations for international competitiveness. However exhausting work can’t be a one-size-fits-all answer. For a lot of ladies, the decision for 70-hour work weeks may not solely be unfeasible but in addition exclusionary. Addressing unpaid care work, making certain flexibility, and creating equitable workplaces are the steps towards constructing a workforce the place everybody can thrive.
Murthy’s imaginative and prescient of a affluent India is compelling, however it’s going to stay incomplete with out addressing these gendered realities. True financial development is inclusive and sustainable, making certain that nobody is left behind within the pursuit of excellence.
The author is a lawyer and analysis marketing consultant. Views are private
