L&T HR Head Responds to Chairman’s 90-Hour Work Week Remarks: ‘Disappointed By Misinterpretation

L&T HR Head Sonica Muraleedharan Defends Chairman SN Subrahmanyan’s 90-Hour Work Week Remarks, Clarifies Misinterpretation and Emphasizes Leadership Values

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Larsen & Toubro (L&T) group head of human resources for domestic operations, Sonica Muraleedharan, said that she was dismayed by the controversy that remarks made by chairman and managing director SN Subrahmanyan, or SNS, had generated. In a LinkedIn post, Muraleedharan wrote about the rising debate over Subrahmanyan’s comments on how demanding work is at L&T, especially when taken out of context from an internal discussion. The controversy erupted after Subrahmanyan’s comments, which sounded casual, were misinterpreted as a directive asking employees to put in an aggressive 90 hours of work per week.

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Muraleedharan clarified that it was not the chairman’s directive. She asserted that L&T has never imposed nor suggested such an aggressive work schedule. Instead, Subrahmanyan’s words were his personal view in a private setting and should not have been read as a company policy. The head of HR expressed deep disappointment at how such casual remarks were taken out of context, emphasizing the need for careful consideration before reacting to statements in isolated settings.

In her post, Muraleedharan used the opportunity to defend Subrahmanyan. She described him as a leader who deeply cares about the well-being of his team. She noted, “SNS is, without a doubt, a leader who actually cares for the well-being of his team. He always has an exceptional ability to balance very demanding professional commitments with creating a nurturing and empowering environment for his team.” Muraleedharan told us that she had been able to experience her work under the leadership of Subrahmanyan as more than a job and termed it a transformational experience and valuable life lessons in the way of a “living masterclass on leadership.”

She also suggested that leaders like Subrahmanyan be celebrated for empowering teams, motivating individuals, and leaving behind a lasting positive impact on the organization rather than being dragged into controversies based on misinterpretations. She advocated for a shift in focus from sensationalizing such statements to recognition of the larger positive changes inspired by such leaders.

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The controversy began with a video of Subrahmanyan making a statement in an internal discussion, which soon found its way to the social media. He regretted that he could not force the employees to work on Sundays and cited that those who wanted to reach top would need to work 90 hours a week. This did not take any time before it went viral and faced criticisms from the public.

L&T has since issued a statement through its spokesperson clarifying that the remarks were within the line of the larger vision of the company for progress and were grossly misunderstood as out of context. This is yet another controversy when a similar incidence took place previously in the nation. Narayana Murthy, co-founder of Infosys, was criticised when he commented on the possible advantage of a 70-hour working week toward national progress.

Although the statements were controversial, the reply from Muraleedharan shows the importance of realizing what such comments mean and what kind of vision the leaders have, such as Subrahmanyan.

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