L&T has come to the defence of its Chairman SN Subrahmanyan who received heavy backlash on social media for advocating 90-hour work week.
The company said on Friday that the Chairman's remarks reflect the larger ambition of nation-building, "emphasising that extraordinary outcomes require extraordinary effort".
"The Chairman's remarks reflect this larger ambition, emphasising that extraordinary outcomes require extraordinary effort. At L&T, we remain committed to fostering a culture where passion, purpose, and performance drive us forward," a company spokesperson said in a statement.
Top celebrities including Bollywood superstar Deepika Padukone and Harsh Goenka, Chairperson of the RPG Group had condemned Subrahmanyan's remarks.
Earlier, Subrahmanyan had said: "I regret I am not able to make you work on Sundays, to be honest. If I can make you work on Sundays, I will be more happy, because I work on Sundays also," he said in an undated video, apparently of an internal meeting, which has gone viral on social media.
"What do you do sitting at home? How long can you stare at your wife? How long can the wives stare at husbands? Get to the office and start working," he further said.
"...If you have to go on top of the world, you have to work 90 hours a week," the video has him saying.
To support his views, according to reports, Subrahmanyan shared an anecdote about a conversation he had with a Chinese individual.
According to him, the person claimed that China could surpass the United States because Chinese workers put in 90 hours a week compared to the 50 hours worked by Americans.
Earlier, Infosys founder Narayana Murthy had advocated working 70 hours a week. He also received heavy backlash on social media.