How Should HR Handle Unpaid Overtime in IT Companies? Seeking Your Advice

Overtime Policy Concerns in IT Company

I am working as an HR Manager in an IT Company for the last 6 months. I am not satisfied with one policy of the company, which is overtime. There is an employee who spends more than 4 hours extra time in the office daily, while the normal working hours are 9 hours. He is very demotivated as he is not receiving anything in return for the extra hours. I have spoken to my boss many times, but he always tells me that this is an IT Company, and he has to finish the project no matter what, and we will not provide anything extra under any circumstances.

Please guide me on what I should do. As an HR professional, I believe this is very wrong. I need your opinions on the same.

Thank you.

You can consider adjusting office login-logout timings for employees who are staying beyond a particular time in the evening. For example, in my company, if an employee stays beyond 8:00 PM, the next day he/she has the flexibility to log in at 10:00 AM instead of the regular timing, which is 9:00 AM.

Regards,
Ram

Firstly, I would advise you to find out the reasons for which he has to stay back.

1. If the employee is slow in work or an underperformer, create action plans and PDPs to help him develop himself.

2. If he is forcibly overloaded with work, then you will have to release him from that workload if you don't want to face a high percentage of attrition.

3. If he is willingly staying back, then ask him to adhere to timings and make sure he leaves on time.

Let me know if you require any help from my end. You can contact me using the details below.

Regards

Addressing Demotivation in the Workplace

Demotivation in companies is a common issue nowadays, and your boss seems to be following this trend. With such an attitude, your company may struggle to achieve success because a demotivated employee can be as detrimental to the company as ineffective policies.

If we talk about solutions to this problem, as an HR Manager, it is your responsibility to discuss this with management and draft policies addressing these issues. If your boss is not paying attention to this problem, consider escalating the issue higher up the hierarchy. Don't remain silent just for the sake of your job. You are the one who has taken the initiative to understand the employees' issues, and it is up to you to find a solution promptly.

In the early days of our company, we also did not compensate for overtime and expected employees to work late. This trend began because a few employees, seeking short-term benefits, used to stay long hours, and gradually, others adopted this practice. A few years ago, employee attrition suddenly increased, and our management struggled to find a solution. Eventually, we implemented performance incentives, bonuses, vouchers, etc., as a solution.

Try to find a solution yourself; otherwise, there may be no way out. Alternatively, consider aligning your thinking with your boss's perspective.

Regards,
Roshan Pratihast
Asst. Manager (HR)
[Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]
Website: S.D.Pathak & Company

Dear Friends, we are also facing the same problem, but in our case, there are 4-5 employees who sit on a daily basis because of their workload. In fact, we have presented this issue so many times to our boss, but he always replies that we are "white-collar" employees and there is no provision for overtime for us. If they are doing overtime, then it is the demand of their profile; we never ask them to sit late.

So, after approaching so many times, I end up just listening to this. Moreover, we took one initiative where we have started providing refreshments to employees sitting after 7:00 in the office.

Friends, kindly provide some valuable feedback so that we can break this trend, as employees reaching 10:00 at night do not get time to spend with their families, which induces frustration and demotivation among them.

Regards,
Rachna

These are professional hazards and can't be avoided. Let the employee decide for himself rather than you deciding for him. It's good that you are doing your job honestly by showing your concern for him, but this is how IT works.

Ask your boss if the employee can be given compulsory time off in lieu of the overtime. That's the best that can be done, but overtime is not typically given in IT, I guess.

The Culture of Late Working in Organizations

Late working has become a culture in many organizations. It is an accepted norm in many places, and someone leaving the office at the scheduled time is often viewed as if they are committing some crime. Answers to the following questions may lead to some solutions:

• Is late working beyond 8 hours a perennial or occasional phenomenon?

• Is late working specific only to some departments/bosses or throughout the organization?

• Do all employees have a full 8 hours of work to do? Is work well distributed among all available resources, or are there some who have to slog while others enjoy?

• Is there a practice of whiling away time in the morning and noon and starting real work in the evening?

• Are you short of manpower?

• Is your workforce inefficient/slow in working?

• Are there any direct or indirect benefits of working late? (Direct Benefit - Overtime Payment, Indirect Benefit - Better Increments, Better growth, More responsibility, etc.)

To conclude, employees will work beyond 8 hours if they are treated equally and fairly and only if they have enough motivation. Working beyond 8 hours should either be a universal culture throughout the organization, not specific to some individuals or particular departments, or it should be an occasional phenomenon due to work exigencies.

Thanks & Regards

Late Sitting and Overtime Misuse

Late sitting is often misused in organizations for overtime. Generally, people tend to stay late throughout the day to show they are overburdened with work and make it a practice to impress bosses and earn overtime. This is a common scenario.

Now, please review what Mr. Thankar mentioned above and conclude that, above all, it is you who must balance and be in harmony with both the organization and employees.

Regards.

Hey,

I completely agree with Madhav. Once we know the reason for him staying for longer hours, we can figure out the solutions easily.

If he is overloaded with work, then overtime or some kind of benefit has to be given to him.

Dear Shikha, the suggestion which Mr. Reddy and Mr. Gupta have given aligns with my understanding as well. Firstly, check his way of working. Is it that only because of his way of working he has to stay late? Because the same situation I have noticed in my company as well. After assessing him, I decided that it's only because of his slow way of working and taking long intervals in his work that he stays late.

If you need to approach me, below are my details:

Romi Tiku
Mobile No: [Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]
Regards,
Romi Tiku

Dear Shikha, you are the only person in your organization to take up this issue and find a solution. First, you should study the reasons why employees need to work beyond normal working hours, why management purely relies on the existing team members, and if there is any manpower shortage.

You have to clearly explain to your boss the impacts and outcomes that will be faced from the Labor Department for not paying any overtime payment. According to the act, if any employee works beyond normal working hours, the management needs to pay double wages for that period. If the management is not in a position to bear this cost, try to explore alternative measures like offering Compensatory Offs.

Eventually, I advise you to reiterate to your boss about the statutory obligations.

Regards,
HR_Venki

The Issue of Working Late in India

Staying late at the office is the most undesirable phenomenon in India and, I think, in most third-world countries. You are considered safe, secure, and in the good books of top management if you work late and reach home by 11:00 p.m. Top management says that this is the demand of the job profile, and there is no provision for overtime for white-collar workers. This problem persists in most small companies and even in some big companies.

I have a question: about 90% of our workforce is working in the private sector, and the top management of the company should create an atmosphere where every employee can complete his or her work in the stipulated 8 or 9 hours. If there are five working days in a week, I feel starting work in the evening and relaxing during regular working hours is the main problem for top management in private companies.

I really appreciate Shikha for raising such an issue, which has generally become a part of every professional's life. I preferred the solution provided by Mr. M Reddy. It was correctly stated that we need to analyze the actual causes of overstaying and take action accordingly.

Shikha, you need to perform the same activity and discuss it with the management. Otherwise, as rightly quoted by some gentleman, it can become the responsible factor for a high attrition rate, which you will ultimately need to address later on.

Regards,
Deepak Jain

Dear Shikha, I couldn't agree more with Adil Mehdi because he has correctly depicted the situation. In India, people find it fashionable to start work (real work) in the evening and stay till late. It gives them a false impression of being very valuable to the organization. I have a couple of observations:

1. It is a misconception that IT companies make people work very late. Most of the big IT companies have a very well-defined work hour policy, and even if an employee has to stay back because of the project deadlines or anything else, they are suitably rewarded either in terms of money or in terms of leave or in terms of flexi logging hours. It is only small and medium-sized companies that make people work more than what they are paid for. And, if that is the situation in your organization, then be ready for high attrition rates.

2. If your employee who is working late is slow, then training, counseling, or mentoring are some of the options.

3. White-collar and blue-collar differentiations are for literature's sake. You need to adhere to the permitted hours of working (legally), and if that is exceeding, you are legally bound to suitably reward your employee. Show your boss the relevant labor act coupled with some empirical data on work hour policy from some of the well-known IT companies. That may move your boss a little bit.

4. Work-life balance is the key to success. Tell your employees to work smart and fast and not hard (only).

Regards, Team GroupHR

We are wholly responsible for the problem of overtime. No company has ever forced its employees to work late at night or to extend their shifts beyond normal hours. Only once in a while, when the work pressure is high, do we have to sit late hours, but the company takes sufficient care of it, such as by providing dinner, tiffin, or a home drop. For example, in the accounts department, employees have to stay late during auditing or year-end closing, but not the entire year.

There is a saying, "Greed is the root of all problems." In order to impress their superiors, people stay in the office for late hours. They have a greed for good appraisals, promotions, etc. Seeing one person staying late, others follow the same path.

There should be strict rules not to work beyond your normal official hours unless you have received written emails from your seniors.

There was an article written by Narayan Murthy saying that people take much longer to correct their mistakes on Monday morning, which they created by sitting late on Saturday evening.

In order to overcome this problem, we have to change the mindset of all people that you are not going to benefit from working extra hours. Companies will normally say that employees are paid for accomplishing the task rather than how long it took for them to do the work. So we, as employees, have to decide how to maintain a balance between personal and professional life. Putting in extra effort is a positive sign, but not extra hours.

Thanks & Regards,

Usha

I highly appreciate your concern towards employees. I am also an engineer working in the IT industry, where the environment remains similar to any other IT company. These types of problems can be solved by self-discipline as well as some support from the company.

I do not suggest overtime payment in IT companies as many employees would misuse it by extending their work hours. Instead, everyone should commit to working only during official working hours. In the case of staying late, the concerned manager has to send an authorized email for the extended stay with a reason. In this scenario, both the manager and employees will be disciplined. Please remember, if a person exceeds 48 hours of work in a week, then you have to pay them overtime.

So, instead of overtime pay, you can provide compensatory offs for the extra effort spent.

Also, make sure to provide basic facilities like snacks, beverages, etc. It is important for employees to have flexibility in working hours, considering that late stays are sometimes inevitable.

I believe you have received many other useful suggestions from others.

Thanks,

Praveen

Doubt Regarding Employee Overtime and Company Policies

Now, if an employee willingly stays back late because he schedules his work as such, does the company (referring to an IT company) have to arrange for cab services for them and, in some cases, provide meal vouchers if they stay back really late?

From an employer's perspective, I would not want any employee to stay back unless it's required because it adds to my operational costs—lights, air cooling, electricity, etc., and also the cab service charge. These services are provided for employees to cope with their workload, not work preferences.

Also, in case the employee does not use company facilities and commutes in his/her own vehicle, how can an employer judge the reason for staying back late, totally ruling out workload and pressure? (I am assuming here that the cab service in place of a bus shuttle could be a reason for staying back late.)

Looking forward to your comments and perspectives.

Regards,
Nisha

• Ms. Nisha has raised a very valid query.
• I feel management should come out with a policy that discourages late working. Obviously, late working can be allowed only for genuine reasons and with the approval of an authorized person. In short, employees cannot decide on their own about staying late; either they will have to be asked by an authorized person to stay back, or they will have to seek permission to stay back.
• Management has to make it amply clear to supervisors, officers, and managers that they are expected to manage their subordinates and department in such a way that work is completed in a scheduled time only, and late working is occasional and on a case-by-case basis with proper authorization.
• Top Management should seek a monthly/quarterly report from HODs on late working with justification.
• Not giving cab and other facilities to employees who are staying late without authorization will also discourage and stop such practices.
• Secondly, organizational culture is also important. Management should encourage punctuality and efficiency, not pseudo loyalty of late working. (I came across an employee who never used to stay late even during work pressure and stiff deadlines. He stayed late throughout the week. Later it came to light that his wife and entire family had gone out of station, and he was all alone. He used to stay back only to have dinner at the company's cost.)