Staying up at night to chiong work again? No “work-life balance”?
If this sounds familiar to you, you might end up agreeing with this Singaporean Twitter user, who made a point about our unhealthy work culture.
Last Fri (17 Jan), Twitter user surnamed Cheong posted 2 tweets, calling out a fellow Singaporean who praised her colleagues for staying beyond their work hours.
Described to be full of admiration for their “dedication”, Ms Cheong ‘celebrates’ the fact that this girl’s colleagues were staying up till 5am to get their jobs done.
The fact that fellow Singaporeans are so ignorant about the welfare they deserve deeply saddens her.
She laments that we as a society should not be disguising overworking as “dedication and hard work”, which potentially perpetuates the unhealthy mindset.
Her tweet has since garnered over 1,000 retweets, showing that many agree with her statement.
While burning the midnight oil to complete work might seem “responsible”, Ms Cheong’s tweet highlights the fact that such practices are actually signs of poor work-life balance.
When people glorify overworking, it feeds into the mindset that it is the only way we can get things done.
It is not surprising that many Singaporeans work past designated hours, over the weekend and, sometimes even round the clock.
This might be attributed to our competitive mindset as a society and the constant need to be on top of the game.
Many Singaporeans are actually aware of the importance of a work-life balance.
However, the normalisation of overworking does not help with creating a conducive environment for most Singaporean adults to achieve it.
Perhaps employers should introduce measures that will allow Singaporeans to get better work-life balance instead of encouraging them to OT or discuss work after hours.
As a society, let’s take small steps to make “work-life balance” more relevant in Singapore.
What are your thoughts on Ms Cheong’s tweet? Share them in the comments below.
Featured image adapted from Business Times.
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