US Manager's Reaction To Indian Techie Seeking Flexible Work Hours For Newborn Goes Viral

An Indian employee requested flexible working hours to care for their seven-month-old baby, and what the manager said in response has earned praise from online users. According to a viral screenshot shared on X (formerly Twitter), the techie explained that they would make up for the lost time by starting earlier or working at night. The employee told their manager that the nanny for the newborn baby will be leaving at 4:30 pm (Eastern Time), and after that, they will be out of the office to care for the baby till 7:30 pm.

"I plan to make up this time either at night or by starting my day earlier, depending on my schedule. I hope this adjustment works for you and the team," the employee wrote.

The manager responded with empathy and wrote that they hope that the baby enjoys the time with the nanny and learns new skills. They even suggested that they would block the required hours in the calendar to avoid scheduling conflicts.

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See the post here:

An Indian employee asked his US manager to be OOO daily for 3 hours to take care of his 7-months old baby.

Look at his manager's reply. Why it's impossible in Indian workplaces? pic.twitter.com/gu3wFgrUkG

— Swapna Kumar Panda (@swapnakpanda) April 12, 2026

"An Indian employee asked his US manager to be OOO daily for 3 hours to take care of his 7-month-old baby," the caption of the post, shared by Swapna Kumar Panda, read. "Look at his manager's reply. Why is it impossible in Indian workplaces?"

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Social Media Reaction

The post gained massive traction with over 467,300 views and nearly 5,000 likes, and sparked discussions on social media about management styles and work-life balance. Many took to the comment section to share their point of view.

"I think... It's less about country, more about how work is structured and how people think about it," one user wrote in the comment section. "In many places in India, being available all the time is still seen as commitment. So flexibility exists, but it often feels like an exception rather than something normal."

"'This will never change'. A week ago, I finished all my work before time. My logout was 8 PM, but I requested to leave at 7:40 PM because I had a train at 8:30, and anyone in Bangalore knows how traffic can be. I informed my manager in advance, responsibly. Still got yelled at," another user shared their experience.

"We in India also have great work cultures. The IT sector in India is huge - let's not generalise it based on isolated cases," a third user weighed in with their perspective.