With low per capita income, does India deserve 3-day weekend?

Despite the perks of the new labour code, organizations are sceptical of implementing the 4-day work culture swiftly. Also, we need to consider that not all employees need extra hours to be productive; However, many corporate witnessing encouraging results from 4-day week already companies those implementing 4-day work week, seeing positive feedback

How do you think, the proposed new labour codes will be taken in India. The proposed new labour codes, could provide companies the flexibility of four working days in a week, even as the working hours limit of 48 hours for a week will remain 'sacrosanct'. For instance, a four-day working week will have to meet the 48-hour weekly work hours, resulting in daily shifts of 12 hours, which will correspondingly reduce if there is five-day or six-day working week. The Ministry of Labour and Employment is likely to complete the process to finalise the rules for four labour codes soon. The provision of flexibility to have reduced working days of four days in the labour code rules will mean that companies will not require prior government nod to enact it.

Some organisations have taken this initiative before the law. TAC Security, a cybersecurity firm, has been operating on a four-day work week for the past seven months, closing on Fridays to increase productivity. The strategy will be made permanent in the Mumbai office if it makes workers more productive and happy, the company said. According to an internal study conducted by the IT firm, 80 per cent of the team would be prepared to work four days a week for longer hours in exchange for a longer weekend to focus on personal obligations and progress. It's all about keeping standards of execution high, while still putting the team's health and well-being first, we are team of young people and young company we can experiment anything possible to ease the team members work life balance.

It will also drastically alter the way industrial houses treat their employees and it will also impact the working hours, take home salary and other rights of employees. Once the wages code comes into force, there will be significant changes in the way basic pay and Provident Fund of employees are calculated. According to reports, employees and firms will have to bear a higher Provident Fund liability. Hence, there will be more money in PFs and less in-hand salary. Major changes will be introduced in the way an employee's basic pay and PF are calculated. Half of the salary would be basic wages and allowances would be restricted to 50 per cent, as per reports. Contribution to provident fund is calculated as a percentage of basic wage that involves the basic pay and dearness allowance (DA). Under the present regulations, an employer's percentage-based contribution towards the PF balance depends on the employee's basic pay and dearness allowance. Given that basic pay would be increased, more PF will be deducted, thereby bringing down the in-hand salary of the employee.

Microsoft in Japan had introduced the same and claimed that they saw a productivity rise of 40 per cent, with electricity costs coming down to 23 per cent. In India, however, while the CHROs are all for the flexibility the move grants, they are still cautious about how it will be rolled out and treated. Here employees at many firms work more hours than what is prescribed, irrespective of the nature of the job. In fact, the big remote-working bubble burst this year when it was found that people were working more hours than they did in the office. On whether the new proposal of four-day workweek will benefit work-life balance, Rajesh Balaji, CHRO, Matrimony.com, explains, "we anyway work for 10 hours, sometimes even more. So, it's the flexibility which is the key here. There is no work-life balance as the two have already merged. When work-life integration has already happened, this kind of flexibility will help. The disadvantage could be somebody being extremely rigid and insisting on working for 12 hours a day, for four days a week. The nature of some jobs will demand that people work on the fifth or sixth day as well. However, the disadvantages are minor. This is a disruptive initiative by the Government, which will benefit the industry in the long run, improve work culture and help people manage their strengths very well."

On a contrary, many corporates think, India as a country is not ready for a four-day work week structure, when the per capita income is so low. "I don't think Indians deserve three-day long weekends. We are still in the process of building the nation. I would rather support people putting in an extra day of work. I don't think we, as a nation, have amassed enough wealth that we can enjoy three days off every week. It's about time we became serious about putting more work days. As a nation, our per capita income is nearly $3000, what recreation will we do in three days of work? I would rather continue with the five-day workweek with the usual eight hours per day. Also, given the state we are in now, people should come in to work more. Three-day weekends can happen in countries, such as Norway and others where per capita income is $50-50,000 per annum. They have enough wealth to let employees take three days off. Maximum workers in India are paid close to minimum-wage salaries.

Some business houses also think that that we can't create a combination where some will choose to do 12 hours, some five day and others four days a week. "India still hasn't come to a stage where we can offer an ala carte choice.

The bottom-line is, the biggest concern for forward-moving organizations is not deciding the number of working days per week. Given the market uncertainties, the core focus of corporates is to increase productivity level. Employees expected to work 12-15 hours a day to implement 4-day work culture that will impact employee engagement, work-life balance, and overall performance at work. Despite the perks of the new labour code, organizations are sceptical of implementing the 4-day work culture swiftly. Also, we need to consider that not all employees need extra hours to be productive. Many organizations equip their employees with skills to manage time and prioritize their tasks for tight deadlines and better productivity. For that unusual experience, we just need to do a little more.