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After layoffs and an office downsizing, a company rolled out WFH with a catch: employees can work remotely, but only if they stay within Delhi-NCR
The GPS rule has left one worker disappointed. (Image: Representational Image)
A working professional has sparked discussion online after sharing details of a new work-from-home (WFH) policy introduced by their company. While the arrangement initially seemed like a welcome change, the employee later discovered that remote work came with a major condition, workers must stay within Delhi-NCR and their location will be tracked through GPS.
The employee explained in a Reddit post that the company had laid off a large number of staff members last month. As a result, the workforce reportedly dropped from around 40 employees to just 15. The downsizing also forced the company to leave its office space on the sixth floor and move to a smaller area on the floor below.
Company Shifts To Rotational Remote Work
According to the employee, the new office space does not have enough room for the entire team.
“Since the fifth floor doesn’t have enough space for all of us, the company has decided to introduce work from home. We have been allotted only 4 seats on the fifth floor, so the rest of the team will work from home on a rotational basis,” the user wrote in the Reddit post.
The employee added, “After a few weeks, employees currently working from home will come to the office, while those in the office will shift to remote work.”
At first, the worker was pleased with the arrangement and believed it would allow them to spend time in their hometown while continuing to work remotely.
GPS Rule Leaves Employee Frustrated
However, the employee soon learned that the company would not allow staff to work from outside Delhi-NCR.
“I was initially happy, thinking I would finally be able to work from my hometown. However, my boss clarified that we can only work from within Delhi-NCR. To ensure this, the attendance will be marked through GPS, where the system will mark the employee present only if he or she is in Delhi NCR,” the worker said.
The employee further explained that no official reason was provided for the restriction.
“The boss didn’t give a reason but I think if an employee is needed urgently in the office, they should be able to reach quickly. I was really disappointed to hear this. Is this what work from home is supposed to mean?” the post added.
Social Media Users Share Mixed Opinions Online
The post led to a debate among social media users. While some felt the policy was unfair, others said similar rules exist in many organisations.
A user said, “This is called slavery, and sadly it’s normalised.” Another commented, “This is crazy man. I didn’t know companies could do this to employees.”
Some users, however, believed there could be practical reasons behind the decision. A person wrote, “I am guessing the reason is that the WFH is temporary. The company might be planning to rent a new office and move to a hybrid mode. If they allow people to relocate from the city, many would vacate their houses, those with kids will go to their hometowns and get admissions in schools there.”
Another user said, “That’s how it is even in big MNCs. Also, there are many who give silly reasons like power failure and internet failure and are offline. It is probably to avoid all that.”
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