Why India Needs To Give More Mental Health Days To Its Employees

If you¡¯re an employed person who goes to work five days a week, eight hours each on average then it won¡¯t be wrong to say that there have been days when you¡¯ve woken up feeling exhausted even if it¡¯s just a Tuesday.

Back when I was in the first year of college, I joined a startup for my very first internship experience. While the startup never really got as successful or famous, it did give me the opportunity to work with some people who had some experience working at bigger corporates. As a young person who still had a lot of professional navigation to do, I ended up asking one of the employees about why they¡¯d companies which are touted to offer dream jobs and stability for something that¡¯s just starting out and her response left me scared:

¡°That¡¯s what I thought about corporates as well but after three years of hard work, I felt like my ambition was gone. I¡¯d walk into office, meet my deadlines somehow and get home only to repeat the same thing over again.¡±

But if you love what you do, then having the same routine daily shouldn¡¯t feel so bad, right? Her response taught me that when it comes to the corporate world in India, there¡¯s more to it than the rosy picture of success I had in my head:

¡°I did like my job but more than anything, I felt like it was the culture and not just at one organisation but everywhere I¡¯ve worked. Deadlines that are impossible to meet which only creates stress, guilted for taking a leave when needed and calls that you¡¯re going to reply to well beyond work hours. I felt like I wanted to go to work to make life better but it was taking up my whole life. I just felt so exhausted that the only way I could see out of this mental state of hopelessness I was in was just about resigning.¡±

And her story doesn¡¯t seem too far-fetched.

If recent surveys and research are to be taken into account, India needs to start concentrating on the mental health of its employees more than ever. Not only will it benefit the workforce but it will also benefit the employers as they lose out on less work and welcome more productivity.