There is a standing joke about south Asian — particularly Indian — employees regularly bumping off friends and family and taking frequent leave for sundry funerals. There is a reason for such a dismal view: taking time off for personal reasons is frowned upon.
Despite evolving work environments and “unlimited” leave policies, the joke endures as a commentary on persistent professional expectations.
Nevertheless, there are a few instances where companies and individuals are gradually challenging such stereotypes, and fostering a more inclusive work culture where employees feel comfortable taking leave for genuine reasons.
“There exists a genuine apprehension that taking legitimate leave might adversely affect performance evaluations or career progression, prompting individuals to seek leave under other pretexts,” said Dr Gorav Gupta, a psychologist and co-founder of the mental health firm Emoneeds.
According to staffing firm Randstad India, a majority of Indian employees do not take the leave they are entitled to due to feelings of guilt and FOMO (fear of missing out) at work.
“This is a long-standing problem, whose origin lies in organisations and managers running business like a war-time military operation, where subordinates are expected to take leave only after submitting a detailed justification beforehand, and if the same was not found acceptable by the manager, the leave would not be approved,” said RP Yadav, Chairman and MD of HR firm Genius Consultants.
This built a culture of fear among employees, and over time, many started requesting leave citing extreme reasons like death in the family (which is difficult to turn down), and the practice has prevailed over the years, he added.
Policies must evolve
In the post-pandemic world, a bunch of companies have introduced unlimited leave policies, and others encourage employees to take the leave they are entitled to. HR leaders told Moneycontrol that such policies have a low impact on business, but a high impact on motivation, as employees usually behave responsibly and do not take more leave than before.
There are similar issues with the period leave offered to women. Experts say that many businesses offer period leave to appear progressive, without correcting cultural and unconscious biases. It is seen more as a “woke policy” than as something that provides relief to female colleagues.
“The leave policy needs to be part of a larger cultural shift, that includes trust and respect for personal lives. When leaders genuinely support such policies, it sends a message that work-life balance is valued. A supportive work environment is key. Only then can such policies help,” said Sridhar Laxman, founder and Executive Coach at Lucid Minds Coaching.
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