An India-based software engineer thought responding to a work text late at night showed his commitment. But his UK-based senior thought otherwise. The techie shared his experience at his workplace, revealing that his senior colleague refused to review his pull requests (PRs) if he continued responding to feedback after office hours. This instance has once again sparked a conversation on how different workplace culture is in India compared to other countries, especially Europe.
In a post shared on X, the techie named Om explained that he works with a senior software engineer based in England. Because of the time difference between India and the UK, he would often respond to code review comments late in the evening, sometimes as late as 9 or 10 PM in India.
“He Warned Me A Few A Times”
“I work with a senior developer from England. Because of the time difference, whenever he reviewed my PR and left comments, I’d reply immediately. Even if it was 9 or 10 PM in India,” he said. “One day he noticed and asked me, ‘Wait.. are you working beyond your work hours?’ I said, ‘Yeah, but it’s fine.’ He warned me a few times.”
Despite the warnings, the techie admitted that he continued replying to comments outside office hours. That was when his UK-based colleague decided to take a firmer approach. “One day he said: ‘If you reply to my comments after 7 PM India time again, I won’t review your PR for an entire week,’” he wrote. “Then he added, ‘Should I talk to your manager?’”
The unusual ultimatum had the desired effect. “Now I intentionally wait until the next day before replying. I still end up working sometimes. But yeah it made me realise how they prioritise their personal life apart from work too,” he said. “He cared more about my work-life balance than I did, which was really sweet tbh.”
Internet Shares Similar Instances With Their Foreigner Bosses
The post quickly resonated with professionals online, many of whom shared similar experiences of working with managers and colleagues in Europe who encouraged employees to disconnect after. However, Indian professionals shared contrasting incidents.
“I was told to shut my laptop by my Romanian colleague as I raised a PR on Friday. Learnt that day – never work for indian company or manager,” wrote a user.
I work with a senior developer from England.
Because of the time difference, whenever he reviewed my PR and left comments, I’d reply immediately.
Even if it was 9 or 10 PM in India.
One day he noticed and asked me, ..”Wait.. are you working beyond your work hours?”
I said,…
— Om (@Om_Codes_) July 30, 2026
“My shift is from 2:30 to 11:30 PM. I called up a US senior architect for a discussion and immediately said that I will not take much time. He replied, ‘Yeah, you should not!!!’ I was embarrassed… And then he continued to say..it’s past your working hours; you shouldn’t work,” shared another user.
“I had a similar experience in the UK. My manager once sent me home early because I’d finished my work and told me to go enjoy the day. That was new to me,” an individual mentioned.
Meanwhile, a different person commented, “Wow bro.. seems like a dream for Indian employees..It’s so good to work with these good humans.. improves mental health.”