Mumbai Boss Fines Late Comers Rs. 200, Ends Up Paying Rs. 1,000 Penalty Himself

Kaushal Shah, founder of Evor Beauty, shares his experience on social media, highlighting the challenges of punctuality even at the highest levels of a company

Date: June 20, 2024

In a humorous turn of events, Kaushal Shah, the founder of Evor Beauty, implemented a punctuality policy to boost productivity, only to find himself on the receiving end of his own rule. Shah’s experience was shared on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), where he highlighted the challenges of adhering to strict timelines, even at the highest levels of a company.

To enforce punctuality, Shah mandated that all employees arrive at the office by 9:30 am, imposing a fine of ₹ 200 on those who were late. Previously, the office hours were more flexible, with staff arriving between 10 and 11 am. However, Shah’s new policy led to an unexpected personal cost as he himself accrued ₹ 1,000 in fines for being late five times.

In his viral post, Shah humorously noted, “Last week, to increase productivity in the office, I made a strict rule for everyone to be in the office by 9:30 am (earlier, we used to come by 10-11), and if we’re late, we pay ₹ 200 as a penalty. This is me paying it for the fifth time.”

The post quickly sparked a debate on social media about the practicality and fairness of such policies. Many users found the situation amusing and appreciated Shah’s transparency and sense of humour.

Shah further clarified in the comments, addressing concerns about the intention behind his post and the use of the collected fines. 

“It seems my intention behind this post was misunderstood. I shared that tweet to emphasize an important principle for founders and leaders: if you establish a rule for your employees, you must be the first to follow it. As for the concern about paying the penalty to my own UPI wallet, please note that I have created a separate UPI Lite account specifically as a team fund. The money collected is used solely for team activities and benefits, such as dining and other team events. I appreciate the feedback and hope this clarifies my intentions.”

Shah’s experience underscores the importance of consistency and accountability in leadership, as well as the unintended consequences that can arise from well-intentioned policies.