In an era when industry leaders are urging the youth to embrace 70-hour workweeks, maintaining a healthy work-life balance often becomes challenging, leading to an increasingly toxic workplace environment. A recent LinkedIn post has shed light on this issue, sparking conversations about managerial attitudes toward employees' work hours and boundaries.
In the post, Sumit Agrawal, a job search coach, recounted an incident involving two contrasting managerial approaches. Mr Agrawal shared how his manager flagged an employee as an "attrition risk" simply because he had started leaving work at 6:30 p.m. and was less responsive outside of work hours. Concerned, Mr Agrawal addressed the situation thoughtfully, engaging the employee directly to understand any underlying issues without mentioning his boss's request.
This story has sparked meaningful dialogue around the pressures employees face to overextend themselves and the vital role of empathetic management in fostering a supportive workplace.
"Many managers don't realise that people have a life outside of work as well. The unrealistic expectation of being always available has sadly been ingrained in work cultures," he wrote as a part of his share.
Check out the entire post here:
Mr Agrawal's post soon went viral and created a chatter on the internet.
A user commented, "Omg this really sucks. So if the employee doesn't behave like a puppet, its an attrition risk. Really sad to see such a mindset within leadership positions and this is only going to lower the happiness index of employees once they get to know what's been happening which they do eventually."
Another user wrote, "Working late hours can negatively impact an employee's health, leading to reduced long-term productivity for the company. Extended hours often result in unhealthy eating habits, such as consuming junk food, which further harms overall well-being."
"As long as people (leadership) think that employees staying after office hours are more productive and concerned about their work , this work culture isn't going anywhere," the third user wrote.
"The manager's assumption that leaving work at a specific time indicates disengagement is a form of micromanagement. This can lead to a negative work environment and decreased employee morale," the fourth user commented.
"Insane. I think it's time we start tagging such idiotic "managers" in such stories. Maybe only public shame and ridicule will change such behaviour and culture," the fifth user wrote.
