What started as a social media comment by a Mumbai CEO on the work culture of Indians is hogging the limelight in the established media as well. His observation being that some 99 per cent of the employees will not turn up for work if and when they gain financial security. In other words, most people are not interested in the work they do. They are straining their nerves for a few bucks or to keep their family hearths burning. This should shame a nation that’s aspiring to be an economic super power in the near future. Fact of the matter, admittedly, is that there’s no proper work culture across various sectors, and more so in the government sector that should normally have shown exemplary discipline. The private sector is a shade better, thanks to the cut-throat competition among units to excel and the resolve of the management to grow and show profits. It is common knowledge that more chairs in every government office remain unoccupied during the working hours than those that are occupied by those who work. Senior officials are often handicapped by the unionism prevalent among the workforce, and cannot enforce discipline. In the private sector, following the recent tightening of rules as part of the Liberalization process – which the Leftists opposed tooth and nail, but had to cave in ultimately – strikes at the drop of a hat have come down.
The other stark side of the story is private firms are now taking things easy and avoiding increases in salaries and perks even when they can afford to. In such a scenario, governmental intervention is well-advised, as the market mechanisms are oiled by larger circulation of money. Several upwardly mobile nations are having strict norms about the quality and quantity of work their institutions expect from the workforce. While working hours start at 8 am in such nations abroad, India now wakes up around that time and its workforce reaches the establishments before 10 am, as a norm, which too is often flouted. IT wizard NR Narayana Moorthy recently drew flak from many quarters when he proposed that the youth should be made to work for longer hours. A 12-hour-a day work ethic is not a bad idea, perhaps, if matching salary hikes are on offer. Yet, such a proposition would raise public tempers here.
Trade unions are a major source of income for political establishments, more so for the Leftists, and these outfits flourish with the sweat of the workforce. Their argument would often be to reduce the working hours, not necessarily to increase the wages. Unless the mindset changes, and unless the productive forces are unleashed, an economic miracle for India would remain a mirage. It is here that the strengths of a leadership matter. The run-of-the-mill politicians are lazy bums. When they run the nation, miracles need not be expected. Notably, the Indian economy is passing through a bad patch.
