STRESSED EMPLOYEES SHARE HOW 'WORK FROM HOME' AND 'PAYCUTS' ARE FORCING THEM TO QUIT JOBS!

As opposed to popular opinion that work from home has made jobs easier, many employees find it to be more stressful than working from office. The constant pay cuts, Layoffs and long hours of work is reportedly keeping employees on their toes and even forcing some of them to quit their jobs.

Some employees share such experiences to Livemint. Madan Rana, employee at an IT Company in Delhi told that since April he has been paid Rs. 12,000 a month since the company has reduced 80% of his salary. He quit his job recently after nine years. “I have never felt so helpless in my life," “I have never felt so helpless in my life! You can’t make me work 12 hours a day and pay me so little. What about my self-respect, my family? " he says. 

Neha G, a 29-year-old, Mumbai-based public relations consultant told that she decided to get on a con-call with her supervisor and HR manager to inform them about quitting after two years. “It was not an easy one to make because I love what I do. But since the start of the lockdown, there has been a constant pressure to show proof of productivity. They even started sending me mails saying my productivity was going down but didn’t have an explanation for what I was failing to achieve," she shared.

“I’ve been working on a 50% salary cut. I want to contribute to building the company, but if there’s no feedback or transparency in communication, what do you do? It’s taking a toll on my health," she added.

Employees are finding it increasingly difficult to adapt to these changes where their personal and professional boundaries are blurred. Kanika Agarwal, founder of MindPeers a mental health platform says that in a span of three months, there has been a two-fold increase in the number of people coming forward with mental health problems, out of which almost 57% have stress related to their work and career. Most of them fall under the age group of 18-35years. “Mostly those in the millennial cohort are coming forward to talk about how work from home is affecting their personal lives, that there’s no start and stop time. Gen Y is more aware of their feelings and think about what they like and dislike,” she said.

There is no concrete data that shows the number of people who have quit because of work- related stress or working pressure during the lockdown. Anjali Bhole, a HR consultant and career coach says that the figure is likely to be 0.1%. While talking about major changes in work, she mentioned that “For some reason, managers and supervisors are not open to the idea of feedback. In a work from home situation, you have to take that extra minute to talk to your employee about their performance, especially when so many are alone at home." She adds that millennials, who constitute a large section of India’s workforce, are “achievement-oriented and need constant validation and a sense of feeling included".

Although the situation is bleak, some of the employees who quit are hopeful about the future. Madan Rana said “My decision to quit has nudged me to come out of my comfort zone. Maybe I’ll finally start working on the travel startup I have always wanted.”