France slaps ₹2 crore fine on Infosys:Penalises the Indian IT firm for ‘not maintaining’ a proper record of working hours

The French government has imposed a fine of 1.75 lakh euros (around ₹2 crore) on Infosys for failing to maintain proper records of employees’ working hours, a mandatory legal requirement. Infosys disclosed the penalty by France’s Regional Labor Authority DRIEETS le-de-France in a stock exchange filing. Concerns Regarding Working Hours A probe revealed that Infosys’ work-time recording system did not fully comply with the French labour regulations. The authority has expressed concerns about the system’s reliability, its ability to maintain auditable records, and monitoring capabilities for certain categories of employees. Under French labor law, employers must maintain accurate records of employees’ working hours. This includes compliance with the country’s 35-hour work week, overtime limits, and mandatory rest periods. Additionally, the records must be reliable and ‘auditable’ when required. The stock exchange filing does not clarify which employees are affected. Also, it does not specify whether the company has been directed to change its time-recording system. Reactions on social media Following this development, people have reacted on social media. An Instagram user wrote that full-time permanent work in France is, typically, 35 hours, which can go up to 48 hours. Contacting employees after office hours, on weekends, and on holidays is illegal there. Another user commented that now French employees will do their normal work and the workload will shift to India, as “corporate slavery is normal here”. A third user said that it’s no surprise that many young people prefer foreign work culture. Many Indian employers ignore work-life balance, while the government has failed to create strong laws against a six-day work-week or mandate strict overtime (working for over 40 hours) pay. Narayan Murthy’s 9-9-6 work culture controversy The fine comes amid an ongoing debate about work hours in the company. Infosys founder N.R. Narayana Murthy has previously advocated longer work hours for Indian employees, arguing that the country needs more effort to remain globally competitive. Referring to China’s 9-9-6 work culture, Murthy had said that no individual, community, or country has progressed without hard work, backing a 9 am to 9 pm working shift, six days a week.