Amid the storm stirred by the push for a 70-hour workweek by some corporate leaders in India, a new perspective has emerged. Dr. Shamika Ravi, member of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council, has released a paper that dives deep into how much Indians actually work.
Drawing on data from the 2019 Time Use Survey by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), her analysis, titled Time Spent on Employment-Related Activities in India: A Note, reveals critical insights into work culture, productivity, and economic disparities.
How much do Indians work?
Indians already spend an average of 422 minutes per day—around 42 hours per week—on paid work. But this average masks sharp contrasts across regions and demographics:
- Urban workers clock 469 minutes daily (7.8 hours), outpacing their rural counterparts, who average 399 minutes (6.65 hours).
- Government employees work 45 minutes less per day compared to those in private or public limited companies. Notably, urban government workers spend an hour more daily on the job than their rural counterparts.
Work culture across states and sectors
Dr. Ravi’s paper highlights striking disparities in work hours across states and industries:
- Union Territories like Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli report over 600 minutes of daily work. In contrast, Goa and Northeastern states average under 360 minutes, with Delhi at 8.3 hours and Goa at just 5.5 hours.
- Workers in tertiary and secondary sectors log significantly longer hours than those in the primary sector. Yet Goa’s primary sector bucks this trend with comparatively higher work hours.
Gender and social gaps
The study reveals stark differences in work patterns based on gender and social groups:
- Urban women work two hours less daily than men, while rural women trail their male counterparts by 1.8 hours.
- Scheduled Tribes report fewer work hours than other groups, while Other Backward Classes (OBCs) align with the national average.
Work hours and economic growth
Dr. Ravi’s analysis underscores the connection between work hours and economic productivity. A 1% increase in working time is linked to a 1.7% rise in per capita Net State Domestic Product (NSDP). For larger states, this impact is even stronger—a 3.7% boost in NSDP for every 1% increase in work hours.
The reality of 70-hour workweeks
Currently, Gujarat has the highest proportion of its population—7.21%—working over 70 hours weekly, compared to just 1.05% in Bihar. These figures, coupled with significant differences across sectors and demographics, raise important questions about whether a one-size-fits-all push for longer workweeks is practical—or even fair.
