GUEST POST: SN Subrahmanyan's Sunday Sermon Is Just A CEO Magic Trick

While his employees were staring at their wives on Sundays, not only did L&T’s SN Subrahmanyan earn 500+ times more than most of them, he also received a 43% annual hike

BY INDIA ASHOK

Among the numerous annual business, tech, fashion trends making the rounds, one of the most annoying is that of business leaders eagerly attempting to one up each other in presenting themselves as disciples of labour. From Elon Musk to our very own not-so-melodious NR Narayana Murthy—nearly every ‘famous’ CEO that has ever claimed to tie their success to meritocracy and ‘hard work’ has also spent significant time and energy almost nostalgically waxing poetic about the ideal levels of productivity. 

Larsen & Toubro CEO SN Subrahmanyan became the most recent among the long line of brave advocates of tireless labour when he posed this question to his employees about why they should work on Sundays too: “How long can you stare at your wife?” 

Some may wonder at the not-so-subtle gendered flavour of this comment, even going so far as to question whether Subrahmanyan believes women incapable of working 90 hours and that their labour should be limited to cleaning at home on Sundays. Or is he an advocate of gender equity, pushing the boundaries of patriarchy by asking his male and partnered employees to even the scales of invisible and unpaid labour that has historically been entrusted to women. Is he telling them to stop staring and get to work?

Per L&T’s official statement, Subrahmanyan is merely a humble “nation builder”, prepared to sacrifice the well being of the few for the profit of the many. However, I’m yet to find an economist who can make sense of this kind of nation building. More hours engaged in labour would ideally, eliminate the requirement of multiple staffers working in shifts. This could potentially lead to corporations trimming their workforce because why pay 3 workers’ salaries when one will do? The company saves money and makes more profit and thereby, the nation rakes in more money as well. It’s simple math, right? 

Except, what happens to all the workers that were trimmed? Wouldn’t they join the ever surmounting ranks of the unemployed? Wouldn’t the nation’s economy suffer because the unemployed aren’t capable of participating as consumers anymore (see here, here and here)? Those employed are doing noble work and if they’re too tired after 90 hours of work to want to spend money on anything, apart from perhaps healthcare insurance, they can’t be blamed because they’re helping Subrahmanyan and his ilk with nation building. So, who’s investing in the economy? Can the real nation builders please stand up?

The Art of the Steal

What I fail to understand is how these stalwarts of business, who have teams of people working on developing and maintaining their professional and personal image, can repeatedly make such inflammatory statements. Their impressive business background and education indicates that at the very least, they are able to recognise what kinds of comments have the potential to land them in hot water. So, how is this happening?

The undeniable pattern seems suspiciously deliberate; almost as if PR teams have carefully designed these statements to provoke exasperation and mass rage. Like a magician wielding the power of misdirection, this charade of shock and awe just could be effective diversion tactics. 

Perhaps, these statements are meant to quell any semblance of curiosity among the workforce about why their annual hikes appear to diminish year by year, even as corporations boast of generating more revenue than ever before during annual marketing meets. After all, Subrahmanyan himself raked in Rs 51 crore last year. 

As the CEO, not only did Subrahmanyan make over 500 times more than any other regular L&T employee, he also received a 43% annual hike. Meanwhile, per public records, L&T’s non-managerial employees received an annual hike of less than 2% and managerial employees received a hike of around 20%.

Perhaps the inflexible statements business leaders make about return-to-office (RTO) are not so much about productivity as they are about corporations creating inflexible and hostile work environments to push employees to quit. Seems like a nifty way to avoid mass layoffs and protect their brand being negatively impacted by its consequences. All while gaslighting workers about their lack of drive and hard work.

RTO mandates have also been tied to corporations’ real-estate investments. Per reports, business leaders who signed long-term office leases pre-pandemic have since been fuming over the sea of empty desks they’re stuck paying for the next few years. Does this mean that when business leaders aggressively express their outrage and concern about empty offices negatively impacting productivity, they may just be making decisions emotionally rather than being driven by facts and figures? Surely not! 

If nothing else, this cycle of performative productivity sermons and inflammatory soundbites has proven one thing: the modern CEO is not just a leader but also a philosopher, a storyteller, and—above all—a master of the tragicomedy. Their noble quest to "build the nation" seems increasingly akin to burning down the village to save it, all while pocketing a tidy bonus for their troubles.

And so, as we shuffle back to the office to save the world one empty cubicle at a time, let us take a moment to appreciate the real lesson here: when the spreadsheets don’t add up and the workers are weary, there’s always the art of misdirection. After all, why solve systemic problems when you can just dazzle the masses with a well-timed distraction?

So, the next time a CEO waxes poetic about nation-building or questions your ability to stare at your spouse for longer than 15 minutes, remember: it’s not about you, your productivity, or even the nation. It’s about the magic trick. And like any good magician, they’d rather you focus on their sleight of hand than the vanishing act they’ve just pulled on your annual raise.

Enjoy the show. Or don’t. Either way, they’re still taking home crores while you’re left paying 18% GST on caramel popcorn.

India is a neuropsychologist and psychotherapist. Before she became a full-time practitioner, India worked within the corporate sector. India is a staunch advocate of the 4-day workweek and unionisation.