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Indian woman in US shares what 9-to-5 work culture is really like: ‘At 5 pm sharp, everyone leaves’
An Indian woman in the US shared how employees left work at 5 pm sharp, praising the respect for personal time.
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An Indian woman living in the United States has shared her observations about the country’s workplace culture, saying that employees generally stick closely to their scheduled working hours and leave the office as soon as the day ends.
Taking to Instagram, a woman named Nirmala posted a video comparing the 9-to-5 work culture in the US with what she has experienced in India. She said one of the things she appreciates most is how clearly professional and personal time are separated.
(Also read: Indian woman in US shares key workplace lesson she learnt from American peers: ‘Confidence is a skill’)
‘No one works even a second past 5 pm’
Speaking about her experience, Nirmala said, “Friends, 9 to 5 here literally means 9 to 5. In India, even if our working hours are from 9 to 5, we often end up working a little longer, and employers sometimes expect us to stay beyond our scheduled hours. But here, 9 to 5 means exactly 9 to 5. No one works even a second past 5 pm. In fact, about 10 minutes before 5, people start packing up, and at exactly 5 pm, they leave. That’s simply how it works here.”
Her remarks highlighted what she described as a workplace environment where employees are not routinely expected to remain at work beyond their scheduled hours.
Sharing the video, she wrote in the caption, “5 pm means straight home. I really like this aspect of work culture in the US, where personal time is valued and working hours are respected.”
Watch the clip here:
Social media users react
The video prompted reactions from social media users, several of whom agreed with her observations about maintaining clear boundaries between work and personal life.
“This is how work-life balance should be,” one user wrote. Another commented, “9 to 5 should actually mean 9 to 5.”
Others also stressed the importance of respecting employees’ time outside work. “Personal time needs to be respected everywhere,” one person said, while another summed up the sentiment by writing, “Work ends, life begins.”
(Also read: Indian woman in US says owning a car is a ‘survival need’: ‘Having no car is equal to house arrest’)
HT.com has reached out to the user for her comments, and the copy will be updated once her response is received.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)
