Dream11 makes new policy cover Everyone wants to spend quality time with their family in the mountains or on beaches without the pressure of work or worrying about the busy life of cities. But that is not the case always. Even if employees are on leave, they can’t avoid emails and phone calls from managers.

In India, it’s even worse, the employees working for third-party service providers under big companies have to work under high pressure. The employees hired directly by the companies may have some relief but these third-party service providers show no mercy.

These ‘third-party service providers’ usually include the marketing companies which set a target of how many subscribers they need to enroll each week for each employee. The targets are usually high. These companies have cruel managers who make sure anyhow the peoples under them meet their expectations and for that, they have to work even on holidays and weekends.

The Indian company Dream11 has come up with a new policy that allows the company’s employees to enjoy their holidays without worrying about work.

Dream11’s Unplug Policy allows employees to take a week off to spend time with their family, go on a vacation or just relax without getting distracted from work emails, phones, and messages.

If any manager or co-worker disturbs the employees on leave they will be fined 1 lakh rupees (1,208.46 dollars) according to the new Unplug Policy.

The Unplug Policy unplugs employees from work life and all communication platforms. According to the policy, the employees who are on leave will be disconnected from slack, work email, WhatsApp groups, and every other communication platform.

Dream11 announced this policy in a LinkedIn post on 28th February 2022.

Dream11 wrote in the LinkedIn post, “At Dream11, we actually log off the Dreamster who is unplugged, off from every possible Stadium communication platform, be it slack, emails and even WhatsApp groups. We do this to ensure absolutely no one from the Dreamster’s work ecosystem can contact them while they are on their well-deserved break.. We understand that spending quality time with loved ones or just relaxing altogether on a vacation, can immensely improve the overall mood, quality of life, productivity in general and more. Let’s be honest, after doing the hard yards when required, every Dreamster deserves an uninterrupted holiday.”

The post also included that only those employees who are with the organization for at least a year can benefit from this new policy.

According to the reports and from the post Dream11 employees are pleased with the new policy.

The post from Dream11 shares some feedback from employees.

Sakina writes, “Allowing employees to cut off from all company systems and groups is one of the best perks one can get. We are not bothered with work calls, emails, messages, or even WhatsApp for seven days. This helps us spend some quality time doing what we love. And for me, it’s time to head to the mountains. I, for one, do not feel guilty about not having a sufficient network. It’s the most distinctive form of unplugging. This disconnected time also helps one rejuvenate, relax and come back feeling fresh, happy, and renewed energy to give one’s best performance.”

“In a fast-paced and hyper-connected work environment, it is essential to have some time in the year to disconnect from work completely and reconnect with yourself and your family. Dream Sports gives me that opportunity every year. Unfortunately, this year, I visited my Grandmother in Uttarakhand after three long years due to the pandemic. I reconnected with her and my roots, all the while soaking in the beauty of Devprayag.”, writes Shreya

_“When you’re working in a fast-paced environment with tight deadlines around everyone corner, what is most important is to take a while to detox. And Dream11 unplugged gives exactly that opportunity where you get to stay away from work and spend time with what/who you love. For my unplugged this year, I decided to do a trek in Kashmir (I am a big mountain lover!), and it was an amazing experience!” - Nitin

Mustafa shares, “Unplugged helped me take that necessary strategic timeout & come back stronger to play the further innings more productively.”

Dream11 employees seem happy with the new policy. The company expects a week off without the disturbance of co-workers can increase employees’ overall productivity.

People on social media appreciate the company’s new way of thinking and the CEO’s decision. One user wrote this can happen only in India while the other wrote The government should make this policy mandatory for every company in the country.

According to a CNBC TV-18 report, the company’s founders, Harsh Jain and Bhavit Seth have stated that any employee who contacts another employee during the “UNPLUG” period will be fined Rs 1 lakh. Everyone in the company can have ‘Unplug’ time, regardless of their position, date of hire, or other factors. According to the founders, the policy was implemented to ensure that the company is not reliant on any employee.

We come back where we started. These companies only think of their direct employees, which is obvious but they forget hundreds of underpaid third-party staff who work under high pressure to meet the company’s sales and marketing expectations.

This issue is of great concern and I hope the Government of India will think about it and take the necessary steps to make the workplace a happy environment for employees.