Company sets $1,200 fine for employees who sue colleagues on vacation

Receiving urgent work emails from colleagues even while on vacation? This is a common occurrence for many white collar workers, especially in India, where employees feel overworked and underpaid compared to their global counterparts, according to numerous studies over the years.

But a Mumbai-based company has come up with a new way to solve this problem.

Dream11, a fantasy gaming platform, will fine its employees 100,000 rupees ($1,200) if they contact colleagues with “work-related calls or messages” during their off-duty period.

This is part of the company’s efforts to ensure its employees “disconnect and enjoy a healthy work-life balance,” according to a statement shared by Dream11 with CNN .

Under the policy, called Unplug, employees disconnect from all office work for seven days a year.

“Individuals who have opted into a license are disconnected from emails, Slack and WhatsApp groups,” the statement added.

The spokesperson did not share when the policy was first introduced. According to a December interview with CNBC, the company’s co-founders said the policy has been effective so far.

Founded in 2008, Dream11 has more than 1,000 employees, is valued at $8 billion and includes Tiger Global and Tencent among its investors, according to data platform Tracxn.

Not taking a break can be dangerous to your health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), working long hours is killing hundreds of thousands of people a year due to strokes and heart disease.

In a global analysis of the relationship between loss of life, health and long hours of work, the WHO and the International Labor Organization estimated that in 2016, around 745,000 people died as a result of working at least 55 hours a week.

Source: CNN Brasil

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