Time Over for Overtime?

Recently, the Australian Government made headlines by enacting the "Right to Disconnect," (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right_to_disconnect) allowing workers to ignore work-related activities after hours. This legislation follows similar practices already in place across many EU countries. As someone who has spent years working in India's advertising industry, this development piqued my interest. Could this happen here? How would advertising agencies around the globe react to such a norm?

The relentless demand for overtime in advertising agencies is an industry standard. I must admit that I, too, have been guilty of being unreasonable with my ex-colleagues, often asking them to work beyond regular hours, including weekends and holidays. It seems like an unwritten rule that when you join an agency, you not only offer your talent and skills but also your heart, mind, and soul.

The Diminishing Value of Time

A few days ago, I came across a fascinating social science experiment conducted by Priya Raghubir on the value-discounting hypothesis. The premise is simple yet profound: The Diminishing Value of Time.

Raghubir’s research sheds light on a critical concept: when something is offered for free, its perceived value diminishes. This principle can be directly applied to how time is treated within advertising agencies. When employees consistently work overtime without extra pay, their time starts to be perceived as less valuable—both by themselves and their employers. This reduction in perceived value perpetuates a cycle where working late becomes not just expected but almost obligatory.

Applying Persuasion Techniques for Employee Well-being

Ad agencies excel in consumer insights and persuasion techniques to sell products. Maybe, these techniques can be repurposed for employees' well-being. Here are some psychological and sociological strategies that employees can use to reclaim control over their time:

1. Reciprocity Principle: This principle is rooted in the idea that people feel compelled to return favours. If you've been delivering high-quality work and meeting tight deadlines, you have a valuable currency. Make it clear that when you work overtime, it’s a favour, and the agency should reciprocate later (e.g., another day off or a different perk).
2. Framing: How you present your time matters. Instead of simply stating that you need to leave at a certain time, frame it in terms of long-term benefits, such as better work-life balance leading to higher quality work, or cite a short-term obligation like volunteering commitments (e.g., working at old-age homes or with children).
3. Social Proof: Often, overtime pressure comes directly from the client. In such cases, it’s useful to highlight how the client’s own office prioritises work-life balance (if applicable). This creates a sense of legitimacy and can make your request more acceptable to clients. Another social proofing experiment is having a leaderboard displayed in the offices, where employees who work overtime can state the contribution they made in Rupees to the company by putting in extra hours.

Value is dependent on context, and more importantly, on supply and demand. The more time employees give away for free, the more abundant and hence less valuable it becomes. Changing the deeply ingrained overtime culture in India will be challenging. Industry leaders like Ratan Tata, Narayana Murthy, and Bhavish Aggarwal often emphasise the importance of working longer hours. Even the Prime Minister boasts about working over 18 hours a day, framing it as a virtue.

Change won’t happen overnight, but it can start with individual actions that collectively shift the norm—one pushback at a time.