Infosys founder says he doesn’t believe in work-life balance and says weekends are a “mistake”
- Infosys founder Narayama Murthy causes more hours to be worked
- Growing productivity requires 70-hour work weeks, he says
- Murthy says he worked 80 hours a week until his retirement
If you find yourself dreading the weekend and wanting to work a double shift every day, you might be Infosys founder Narayama Murthy’s dream employee.
After speaking out against today’s supposedly work-shy youth who protested long hours, India’s tech boss has revealed that he “doesn’t believe in work-life balance” and won’t change his mind.
Murthy went on to combat the concept of weekends, claiming that it was a mistake and that Indian citizens should work longer hours.
Addressing India’s challenges
At the request of CNBC-TV18 If his controversial past comments about a 70-hour work week were misunderstood, Murthy assured that he means what he says.
He pointed to the 1986 switch from a standard six-day workweek to the now standard five-day workweek as a disappointment, and claims he worked more than 14 hours a day, six days a week, until his retirement. Murthy, the father-in-law of recent ex-British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, says young people should look to post-World War II Japan and Germany, where determined, disciplined and hard-working youth rebuilt nations.
Interestingly, he doesn’t point to better productivity, happiness or money as reasons to work a double shift every day, but rather because India needs young people to work hard to better themselves.
“I think we have to work very hard in this country because there is no substitute for hard work, even if you are the most intelligent man,” he said.
Murthy previously said that young people in India have a “huge responsibility to work very, very hard” to support future generations.
These comments have been widely criticized, and excessive working hours have been shown to harm worker productivity rather than contributing to increased production. It’s common knowledge that happier and healthier employees are more productive, so Murthy’s comments are not entirely welcome.
Infosys also came under heavy criticism in April 2024 for forcing its employees to return to the office.
The ‘In-Person Collab Weeks’ saw more employees return to the office, with Infosys designating six weeks per quarter as mandatory in-person collaboration periods.
