While the pandemic forced it on the workforce to work, two years down the line, the employees in Hyderabad are almost on the brink of a breakdown with work from home.
WFH was always looked upon as an unwanted option by IT employees. While the pandemic forced it on the workforce, two years down the line, the employees in the city are almost on the brink of a breakdown. They are complaining that while they are not paid for long hours, work has become stressful as meeting deadlines has become a challenge.
In pre-pandemic days, WFH was a cool option to pick and choose a day to work from home. Of course, every office had its rules and regulations, and depending on that, employees opted for WFH once in a while.
But the same option has turned out to be a nightmare for the IT employees in Hyderabad. Being an IT hub, the employees complain that more and more people are getting tired of the work from home option. According to government norms, the number of work hours for IT and IT-enabled offices is 48 hours a week. However, now, many employees are putting in at least 12-15 hours a day, and there seems to be no respite in sight.
According to government rules, those extra working hours have to be compensated. But that is not happening, and the IT crowd in the city is totally enraged. The Telangana Shops and Establishments Act says that an employee cannot work beyond eight hours in a day and 48 hours a week. However, the situation is such that quite a chunk of employees is working even during weekends.
Another grouse is that a project that was once completed in 8 months is now expected to be completed in three months. Even upon hiring extra hands, the deadlines seem rather harsh, and employees who have less than three years of experience are said to be suffering severe burnout.
While IT and IT-enabled offices are exempt from the eight-hour rule, they surely have to abide by the 48-hour norm. Now, the employees are demanding that they be compensated for extra hours and want normal hours. #KhabarLive #hydnews
