The Evolving Landscape of Work: Are 9-to-5 Jobs Becoming Obsolete?

Are 9 to 5 jobs dead?

Reid Hoffman, LinkedIn's co-founder, predicts that traditional 9-to-5 jobs might become obsolete by 2034. In India, where millions of young people seek employment, this shift poses both challenges and opportunities.Recently, Reid Hoffman, Co-founder of LinkedIn, made a statement to the effect that 9-to-5 jobs as we know it might be obsolete by 2034. But in India, which has millions of young people looking for employment, all kinds of jobs are important. It is important to understand that the country faces potential job losses due to automation and AI, particularly in low-skill sectors, says Shantanu Rooj, Founder and CEO, TeamLease Edtech. The large informal sector would face the brunt of this as there's a significant skills' gap in this segment, he says, and the sector is vulnerable to displacement. There are multiple green shoots though: Emerging industries, startups and the gig economy offer new jobs; government initiatives like Skill India and Digital India aim to enhance skills and infrastructure; remote work expands global opportunities; and the young Indian population provides an unmatched demographic dividend. "To navigate these changes and make the maximum of these emerging opportunities, India should focus on education, entrepreneurship, technology investment and social safety infrastructure," says Rooj. Where does reality lie for us? Such steps are also necessary as many traditional roles are likely to be transformed or displaced, diluting the need for fixed office hours As automation takes over routine tasks, there will be a critical need for workforce reskilling and upskilling to transition employees into new, high-value roles that may not adhere to traditional working hours, says Arunima KV, Assistant Professor, HR, Organizational Behaviour & Communications, TAPMI Manipal (T A Pai Management Institute). "The rise of automation is coupled with a shift in workforce demographics as millennials and Gen Z prioritise work-life balance and personal development over conventional job security. This makes the traditional 9-to-5 model less appealing," she explains. There are more reasons why flexible work arrangements are looked at favourably. Research has shown that the benefits of flexible work arrangements for millennials include improved work-life balance, reduced organisational costs and a more attractive work environment, says Debolina Dutta, Professor-OB & HRM, Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore (IIMB). However, compressed work schedules can have an impact on job performance. "Flextime has been found to improve productivity, particularly when limited physical resources are shared among employees. However, overusing it can undermine work goals and lead to more time and resources being spent on self-organisation and communication," says Dutta. The expected shifts across sectors and roles Rooj of TeamLease Edtech says manufacturing, retail, customer service are among the sectors where some jobs would start disappearing. But he also sees healthcare, logistics, entertainment and media, among others, creating demand for new job profiles. Traditional 9-to-5 jobs are likely to diminish sooner in IT, insurance, finance and e-commerce as flexible work arrangements become more prevalent, says Arjun Ranga, Managing Director, Cycle Pure Agarbathi. But the manufacturing, healthcare and education sectors will continue to rely on formal employment structures at least for now. Jobs that require interpersonal skills like creativity, empathy and problem solving will become more valuable. "To compete with the global market, sectors like banking, insurance and education in India will need to extend their work hours beyond 5:30 PM. This will create job opportunities as well as increase customer's delight," says Ranga. Why formal job creation is still the key need in our country To create a resilient workforce amid job disruptions, formalising of the economy is vital. Rooj points out that this will ensure social security benefits like pensions, healthcare and unemployment insurance, along with legal protections such as labour rights and contractual stability. Formal jobs also promote skill development and continuous learning, essential for adapting to evolving job requirements. Arunima, too, underlines the importance of formal job creation in economic and social development. These jobs provide stability and security for individuals and families, contributing to economic stability. Public sector organisations also offer similar benefits, providing stability to a large workforce. Formal employment also contributes significantly to the government's tax revenue through income taxes and social security contributions. As for a shorter workweek, studies have shown that it has some unintended advantages, too. Quoting a French reform that reduced the standard workweek from 39 to 35 hours, Dutta says it reduced smoking by six percentage points. The reform also lowered the body mass index (BMI) and increased self-reported health. Overall, the study suggests that policies reducing working time could potentially lead to significant health benefits. However, the IIM-B professor adds that the debate around these benefits still rages on as researchers have found conflicting outcomes. Though work-from-home is supposed to improve the balance between work and family life, it can also increase work-family conflicts due to factors such as longer work hours, role conflicts, discontent, burnout and psychologically dangerous conditions.

Are 9 to 5 jobs dead?

Recently, Reid Hoffman, Co-founder of LinkedIn, made a statement to the effect that 9-to-5 jobs as we know it might be obsolete by 2034. But in India, which has millions of young people looking for employment, all kinds of jobs are important. It is important to understand that the country faces potential job losses due to automation and AI, particularly in low-skill sectors, says Shantanu Rooj, Founder and CEO, TeamLease Edtech. The large informal sector would face the brunt of this as there's a significant skills' gap in this segment, he says, and the sector is vulnerable to displacement. There are multiple green shoots though: Emerging industries, startups and the gig economy offer new jobs; government initiatives like Skill India and Digital India aim to enhance skills and infrastructure; remote work expands global opportunities; and the young Indian population provides an unmatched demographic dividend. "To navigate these changes and make the maximum of these emerging opportunities, India should focus on education, entrepreneurship, technology investment and social safety infrastructure," says Rooj. Where does reality lie for us? Such steps are also necessary as many traditional roles are likely to be transformed or displaced, diluting the need for fixed office hours As automation takes over routine tasks, there will be a critical need for workforce reskilling and upskilling to transition employees into new, high-value roles that may not adhere to traditional working hours, says Arunima KV, Assistant Professor, HR, Organizational Behaviour & Communications, TAPMI Manipal (T A Pai Management Institute). "The rise of automation is coupled with a shift in workforce demographics as millennials and Gen Z prioritise work-life balance and personal development over conventional job security. This makes the traditional 9-to-5 model less appealing," she explains. There are more reasons why flexible work arrangements are looked at favourably. Research has shown that the benefits of flexible work arrangements for millennials include improved work-life balance, reduced organisational costs and a more attractive work environment, says Debolina Dutta, Professor-OB & HRM, Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore (IIMB). However, compressed work schedules can have an impact on job performance. "Flextime has been found to improve productivity, particularly when limited physical resources are shared among employees. However, overusing it can undermine work goals and lead to more time and resources being spent on self-organisation and communication," says Dutta. The expected shifts across sectors and roles Rooj of TeamLease Edtech says manufacturing, retail, customer service are among the sectors where some jobs would start disappearing. But he also sees healthcare, logistics, entertainment and media, among others, creating demand for new job profiles. Traditional 9-to-5 jobs are likely to diminish sooner in IT, insurance, finance and e-commerce as flexible work arrangements become more prevalent, says Arjun Ranga, Managing Director, Cycle Pure Agarbathi. But the manufacturing, healthcare and education sectors will continue to rely on formal employment structures at least for now. Jobs that require interpersonal skills like creativity, empathy and problem solving will become more valuable. "To compete with the global market, sectors like banking, insurance and education in India will need to extend their work hours beyond 5:30 PM. This will create job opportunities as well as increase customer's delight," says Ranga. Why formal job creation is still the key need in our country To create a resilient workforce amid job disruptions, formalising of the economy is vital. Rooj points out that this will ensure social security benefits like pensions, healthcare and unemployment insurance, along with legal protections such as labour rights and contractual stability. Formal jobs also promote skill development and continuous learning, essential for adapting to evolving job requirements. Arunima, too, underlines the importance of formal job creation in economic and social development. These jobs provide stability and security for individuals and families, contributing to economic stability. Public sector organisations also offer similar benefits, providing stability to a large workforce. Formal employment also contributes significantly to the government's tax revenue through income taxes and social security contributions. As for a shorter workweek, studies have shown that it has some unintended advantages, too. Quoting a French reform that reduced the standard workweek from 39 to 35 hours, Dutta says it reduced smoking by six percentage points. The reform also lowered the body mass index (BMI) and increased self-reported health. Overall, the study suggests that policies reducing working time could potentially lead to significant health benefits. However, the IIM-B professor adds that the debate around these benefits still rages on as researchers have found conflicting outcomes. Though work-from-home is supposed to improve the balance between work and family life, it can also increase work-family conflicts due to factors such as longer work hours, role conflicts, discontent, burnout and psychologically dangerous conditions.