Try GOLD - Free
Work-Life Balance: The Debate Continues
The New Indian Express Kochi
|January 12, 2025
As per law, in most states working hour limit is set at 48-hour week
LARSEN & TOUBRO chairman SN Subrahmanyan's 90-hour-week comment has once again brought back the work-life balance debate. In an internal meeting, he told employees, "I regret I am not able to make you work on Sundays."
Infosys founder Narayana Murthy also had pitched for a 70-hour work week that ignited the heated debate. Ola CEO Bhavish Aggarwal too had supported Murthy's comment saying he is 'fully in sync' with his direction to the youth.
The growing debate on the issue necessarily points to widening generational rifts in enterprises, points out human resource experts.
Enterprise leadership today holds a varying mix of baby boomers, generation X-ers and millennials, and it shows when recurring issues like work from home and flexibility re-emerge, says Kamal Karanth, co-founder of Xpheno, a specialist staffing firm.
"The definitions of effort, intensity, consistency and productivity keep evolving with generations, and the resultant frictions are here to stay. Even if you keep the opinions aside, it seems mandatory for all leaders to know that there's a thin line between 'within and without' of enterprises," he adds.
This story is from the January 12, 2025 edition of The New Indian Express Kochi.
Subscribe to Magzter GOLD to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 10,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MORE STORIES FROM The New Indian Express Kochi
The New Indian Express Kochi
No new non-fossil energy target till '30: Govt
AFTER achieving the target of 50 percent of its installed capacity from non-fossil fuel energy sources five years ahead of schedule, India has clarified that it will not set any new goals in its upcoming Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement until 2030.
2 mins
October 09, 2025
The New Indian Express Kochi
How youth leagues have laid the platform for TN kabaddi players
SOLID LAUNCHPAD
2 mins
October 09, 2025
The New Indian Express Kochi
World Jr C’ships: India vs Korea in quarters
SHUTTLERS from India put up yet another clinical performance in last Group Stage tie against UAE to enter the quarterfinals of the ongoing BWF World Junior Championships in Guwahati on Wednesday.
1 min
October 09, 2025
The New Indian Express Kochi
CPWD sets up central unit to keep regular watch on construction quality
IN a bid to enhance the quality and transparency of its construction and maintenance projects, the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) has decided to establish a Special Centralised Unit for Quality Assurance and Management under the Directorate.
1 mins
October 09, 2025
The New Indian Express Kochi
Zubeen’s police officer cousin held over death, suspended
SANDIPAN Garg, an Assam Police Service officer and cousin of Zubeen Garg, arrested by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Assam Police in connection with the music icon’s death on Wednesday.
2 mins
October 09, 2025

The New Indian Express Kochi
'WE ARE FILMMAKERS, NOT CRIMINALS'
In the light of the censorship troubles faced by the film industry in general and his own film, Panjab ‘95, in particular, Honey Trehan talks about suppression, thought control and freedom of expression
2 mins
October 09, 2025
The New Indian Express Kochi
TN regulator slaps notice on Sresan
THE Centre has pointed fingers at the Tamil Nadu Food and Drug Administration (TNFDA) for not yet cancelling the licence of Sresan Pharmaceuticals, the manufacturer of Coldrif cough syrup, linked to the deaths of at least 20 children in Madhya Pradesh.
1 min
October 09, 2025
The New Indian Express Kochi
'Air power can shape military outcomes'
HIGHLIGHTING the significance of “bold and precise” air operations during Operation Sindoor, Air Chief Marshal AP Singh of the Indian Air Force asserted on Wednesday that it not only shaped the military outcome but also restored the rightful place of offensive air action in the national consciousness.
1 mins
October 09, 2025
The New Indian Express Kochi
Death penalty: SC rejects Centre plea for framing victim-centric guidelines
THE Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected the Centre’s application for laying down victimand society-centric guidelines in heinous offence cases where the death penalty is awarded.
1 min
October 09, 2025
The New Indian Express Kochi
Army builds homestays to boost border security
IN a strategic move blending national security with local economic revival, the Indian Army has inaugurated tent-based homestays in the remote border village of Garbyang in Uttarakhand.
1 mins
October 09, 2025
Listen
Translate
Change font size