A recent workplace incident involving a Kolkata-based contract employee has led to a lively online debate over office rules, reporting policy and how much discretion employees have to take when they have quit work and leave the office at the end of the day.
The employee said he was given a formal warning after being asked to apologize after leaving the office and not telling anyone (the department head).
Working at the organisation for over 1.5 years, they were aware of an internal practice to inform senior officials or the department head before leaving. But they wondered if the same procedure should be implemented every day even if an employee has completed their assigned working hours and has no pending tasks.
According to the employee’s account, employees of the department were supposed to tell the department head before leaving the office. Staff members were supposed to communicate in the office group when they were going to be 10 to 15 minutes late, he said.
The employee admitted that this was routine practice in the department, but said they were uncertain why they had to communicate daily and they were confused about the reason for the need for them to communicate before leaving after the workday was finished.
The key question was whether completing the prescribed working hours should be sufficient when there is no pending work. They said they would be willing to go beyond the hours when there was unfinished work that they needed to complete. They also said they would be willing to talk to seniors about whether there was any pending work that could be done the next day if it was too late.
But the employee also said that if there was no extra work, they would not need permission or daily notification. They asked others on the internet whether government organisations, private organisations and other workplace practices are similar.
The incident has inspired wider discussions about the culture of work. In most organisations, attendance, shift timings, reporting structures and exit procedures are governed by internal policies. These requirements vary greatly depending on the employer, department, employment contract, nature of work and operational requirements.
Some workplaces will require employees to inform a supervisor before leaving due to attendance tracking, shift handovers, security procedures or other organisational requirements.
At the same time, employees may have different expectations about what is reasonable workplace communication. A requirement to notify a department head before leaving may be different depending upon whether it is a formal written policy or an informal departmental practice. A workplace rule and an established custom can be important when employees are warned for non-compliance.
The employee also stated their job contract status as being contractual which may be relevant as contract workers' terms can differ from permanent employees. But the available account does not provide us with the full employment policy of the organisation, the exact wording of the contract or circumstances surrounding the warning.
The screenshots shared in connection with the incident have added to the discussion because of the three choices seemingly offered to the employee. The employee said they accepted that they should have followed the existing instruction but still didn’t know why the notification was needed after they finished working hours.
The episode has since become another point of discussion around workplace expectations in India. Working hours, overtime, communication between managers and employees and employee autonomy have become increasingly prevalent as employees share workplace experiences online.
But one person’s account cannot tell if the practice described is common in government or private sectors. Rules vary between organisations and even within the same organisation. Those in a similar position would need to look at their appointment letters, employee handbooks, attendance policies and workplace rules to know what they are required to do and when.
As of now, the Kolkata employee's post has attracted attention because it raises a simple but widely debated workplace question: should employees still need to formally tell a senior before leaving? The answer might depend on the employer’s documented policies and the job role, not on one universal workplace norm.
