Modern slavery? Priyanka Chaturvedi slams L&T chairman SN Subrahmanyan’s ‘90 hours a week’ remark
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi criticised L&T chairman SN Subrahmanyan for suggesting a 90-hour workweek, calling it misogynistic and likening it to ‘new age slave driving’.
A day after Larsen and Toubro (L&T) CEO SN Subrahmanyan asked people to work for 90 hours a week, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi on Friday hit out at him, saying it reeks of “wanting to be new age slave drivers”.
In a post on X, Chaturvedi wrote, “Besides being misogynistic, this statement reeks of wanting to be the new age slave drivers of India.”
What did the L&T CEO say?
Earlier on Thursday, Larsen and Toubro chairman SN Subrahmanyan triggered an online outrage with his remark, asking people to work for ‘90 hours a week’.
“I regret I am not able to make you work on Sundays. If I can make you work on Sundays, I will be more happy because I work on Sundays,” PTI quoted SN Subrahmanyan as saying from an undated video circulating on social media.
“What do you do sitting at home? How long can you stare at your wife? How long can the wives stare at their husbands? Come on, get to the office and start working,” he added.
Later, Larsen and Toubro (L&T) issued a statement clarifying Subrahmanyan's remarks and referring to them as “extraordinary efforts required for achieving extraordinary outcomes for the nation”.
“We believe this is India's decade, a time demanding collective dedication and effort to drive progress and realise our shared vision of becoming a developed nation. The chairman's remarks reflect this larger ambition, emphasising that extraordinary effort,” L&T spokesperson said in a statement.
Similar to Infosys co-founder Narayan Murthy:
Subrahmanyan's remarks are now being compared with Infosys co-founder Narayan Murthy, who had advocated a 70-hour work week few months ago.
“India's work productivity is one of the lowest in the world. My request is that our youngsters must say, ‘this is my country, I want to work 70 hours a week’,” Murthy had said.
Reactions:
Capitalmind founder and CEO Deepak Shenoy shared his thought-provoking take on productivity and work-life balance.
Shenoy wrote in a post on the social media platform X, “I've probably worked 100 hours a week for nearly all my working life, but most of that was as an entrepreneur. You don't have to enforce working hours. People who are motivated will work happily. In any case, most real work happens in 4-5 hours a day, but you don't know when that happens.”
RPG Group Chairman Harsh Goenka expressed his concerns regarding the idea of a 90-hour work week. He posted on X, “90 hours a week? Why not rename Sunday to ‘Sun-duty’ and make ‘day off’ a mythical concept? Working hard and smart is what I believe in, but turning life into a perpetual office shift? That’s a recipe for burnout, not success. Work-life balance isn’t optional; it’s essential. Well, that’s my view! #WorkSmartNotSlave."
Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone was shocked by L&T Chairman SN Subrahmanyan's 90-hour workweek comment. She took to Instagram and shared a screenshot of the statement. “And they just made it worse…”
With agency inputs.
Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
Business NewsNewsIndiaModern slavery? Priyanka Chaturvedi slams L&T chairman SN Subrahmanyan’s ‘90 hours a week’ remark
First Published:10 Jan 2025, 02:39 PM IST
- Top Gainers
- Top Losers
- 52 Week High