Bengaluru chef claims latecomers at luxury hotel were made to stand with hands up for 2 hours | Trending

The tragic death of a 26-year-old EY India employee, reportedly due to work-related stress, has sparked a nationwide conversation among Indian workers about toxic workplace environments. Employees are now sharing stories of companies that glorify excessive overtime and foster cultures that demean and devalue their staff. The unnamed hotel punished tardy employees making them stand with hands raised (Representational image) One Bengaluru-based chef and nutrition coach spoke to The Nod magazine about her time with a luxury hotel that punished tardiness making employees stand with their arms raised for two hours and making them clean refrigerators with bare hands. Nayantara Menon Bagla said the hotel, which remained unnamed, made employees work 18 to 20 hour shifts and denied time-off even for personal emergencies. “Welcome to hell”“When I was being inducted into a luxury hotel, the programme director told us, ‘Welcome to hell,’” Bagla told The Nod. The words proved prophetic, for employees had a rough time at the hotel. “There were work shifts of 18-20 hours, seniors taking advantage of young folks, and constant sexual innuendoes,” Bagla revealed. “Sure, kitchens and restaurants are high-pressure environments but it can’t be to the point of covering up suicides or mass bullying. Mental health was not even a discussion,” she said. The hotel not only normalised overtime but also reinforced outdated gender norms, the Bengaluru chef indicated, claiming that she was asked to lose weight. Moreover, women were expected to be “subservient in the kitchen.” “And if you arrived late, you had to stand outside with your hands up for two hours and clean every refrigerator in the hotel with bare hands,” she said. Several other Indian professionals have come out with stories of toxic workplaces in the last few days. One former Ernst & Young employee, speaking after the death of Anna Sebastian, revealed that 18-hour shifts were the norm at the consulting firm. (Also read: EY Pune employee, 26, died due to work stress. No one from company attended her funeral)