An Indian boss, in a WhatsApp message straight out of Hitler’s playbook, has asked employees to either work on weekends or extend their shifts by two hours from Monday to Friday, that too without any compensation. The boss, whose initials are SC, asked employees to come prepared on Monday. A screenshot from the office WhatsApp group has made it to Reddit. The boss has been receiving flak for “normalising” work beyond the standard shift hours and weekends after the screenshot went viral.
‘Boss’s Hitler-like diktat’
The post, which was shared by a Redditor in the “IndianWorkplace” community, has a “workplace toxicity” tag. The title of the post, which has a WhatsApp chat screenshot embedded in it, reads, “Requirements to work on weekends”.
The first message, apparently in response to working weekends, reads, “I have commitments and plans, so unable to work on Saturdays and Sundays. If possible, I will try to complete.”
Another text from another employee reads, “As I’m currently at my hometown without access to my work laptop, I won’t be able to take up work this weekend or on any future weekends.”
She added, “However, I’ll ensure that the assigned volume is fully managed during the weekdays, and l’ll remain available during regular working hours.”
The long WhatsApp message ended with the words: “Thank you for your understanding” and if “there’s anything she should prioritise early next week”.
A third employee, who first apologised for a delayed response, said, “I’m now in Arakkonam with my friend’s marriage. I will return tomorrow afternoon… I’ll try to complete it….”
‘Either report to office on weekends or…’
After going through the messages, the furious boss lashed out at one “Karthic”, saying that it won’t work out this way. “We need to plan something else. I will address the complete team on Monday.”
While the message until here read “sorts of” normal, it turned into a “Hitler-like” diktat.
“Either we have to report to the office on Saturdays and Sundays for complete 8 hours or need to extend the shift on a daily basis for 2 hours for the next three weeks…,” it further read. “Guys, kindly prepare your mindset and come to work on Monday.”
When one asked for “context”, the person who posted the screenshot said, “My friend did mention it’s because of additional volume. However, the tone seemed more like an order than a request. Also, there is no compensation of any sort for this.”
The post, which was shared two days ago, has received over 1,500 upvotes. A few even couldn’t hold themselves back from commenting on the same.
“They are literally stealing his labour. Refuse tactfully. If that doesn’t work, refuse directly. Of course, he needs a new job soon,” one top comment when filtered for “best” read.
Another said, “Absolutely do not work a second on the weekend unless it’s your own fault for not being able to in the week. Very slippery slope. Pretty sure none of us gets paid overtime for that.”
One even pointed out why workplaces have started using WhatsApp rather than apps like Microsoft Teams and Slack. To this, one replied, “Because it’s unofficial.”
In the comments, one Reddit user – “upbeat-Wrangler” – said that they worked for six days, and even then, someone from the office asked them to work on their only day off. They added, “It’s an Indian mindset, but I am sure eventually the coming generation will fix this.”