Infosys founder Narayana Murthy stirred controversy when he said that youngsters should work 70 hour weeks, if India has to compete with economies that progressed in the last two to three decades. However, International Labour Organisation's (ILO) data updated in 2023 shows that Indians are infact among the most hard working people in the world.
According to the data, Indians on an average work 47.7 hours per week per employed person. When compared with the 10 biggest economies, Indians have the longest average work week. India ranks 7th in the global ranking following Qatar, Congo, Lesotho, Bhutan, Gambia, and the United Arab Emirates.
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In fact, the data points out the inverse relation between the number of working hours and the level of productivity. The GDP Per capita of a country with shorter working hours is relatively higher than the countries with longer working hours.
Among the top 10 biggest economies in the world, India has the longest working hours and lowest per capita GDP. Meanwhile, France which has the shortest working week among the top 10 biggest economies at 30.1 hours has among the highest per capita GDP at $55,493.
Narayana Murthy advocated for a 70 hours work week for youngsters so that India can compete with economies that progressed in the last two to three decades.
“India's work productivity is one of the lowest in the world," Murthy said while speaking to former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai for a podcast, The Record. "So therefore, my request is that our youngsters must say, ‘This is my country. I’d like to work 70 hours a week," Murthy said, adding that this is exactly what the Germans and Japanese did after the Second World War. "They made sure that every German worked extra hours for a certain number of years."
While this comment received flak all over the internet, several industry leaders including JSW Group CMD Sajjan Jindal, Ola Cabs Co-Founder Bhavish Aggarwal of Ola, and Pai supported his view.