Working Conditions In India:

Working Conditions In India -

Serfdom

What is serfdom?

Serfdom was a system in medieval Europe where farmers were bound to a piece of land and had to follow their landlord's rules. Most serfs grew crops on land owned by a lord to support themselves.

A key aspect of serfdom was that serfs lacked many personal freedoms. They couldn’t move away from their land or village without their lord's permission and needed approval to marry, change jobs, or sell property. Serfs were tied to their land and could be transferred to a new lord. They often faced mistreatment and had limited legal options. A serf could only gain freedom through manumission, enfranchisement, or escape. A key aspect of serfdom was that serfs lacked many personal freedoms. They couldn’t move away from their land or village without their lord's permission and needed approval to marry, change jobs, or sell property. Serfs were tied to their land and could be transferred to a new lord. They often faced mistreatment and had limited legal options. A serf could only gain freedom through manumission, enfranchisement, or escape.

Now lets talk about 21st Century’s corporate work culture.

Capitalism, since its inception has been exploitative in nature. In the start of industrial revolution in the Great Britain, people experienced horrible working conditions. Industrial cities grew quickly as farmers and their families moved to find jobs in new factories and mines. These workplaces were often dangerous and harsh. Workers faced long hours usually about 12 to 16 hours, low wages that barely covered living costs, unsafe and dirty conditions, and few rights.

But then, things started to change.

Soon people started getting Sundays off as a holiday primarily due to the masses conducted during that day. Work hour limit was introduced by henry ford to 40 hours in his company in the late 19th Century.

New Zealand introduced its first national minimum wage laws in 1894 through the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act. This law created arbitration boards to enforce mandatory arbitration, in contrast to the wages board system used in Victoria.

But these changes were primarily focused in the New World and colonized countries had mostly the old exploitative work practices which is reflected to this day in countries like India.

Everybody knows the working conditions in countries like India, especially in the informal sector. No work limit, people vulnerable to abhorrent exploitation by the owners, horrible pay, no worker protection, etc.....

Although we collectively as Indians including the Indian government has decided to collectively ignore the this massive crisis in the informal sector because it ‘doesn’t affect the rich people’. But as Corporate sector massively expanded in the country, even the privileged have started to feel the pinch.

Lets not beat around the bush, the only reason these multi national companies set up their operations in our country is because of the cheap labour of our country and by making this move, they also find out that its very easy to intimidate and exploit the workers.

On an average, an Indian worker works for an average a whopping 47 hours which is literally the 2nd highest in the world besides Bhutan. The median wage in our country is 27,300 rs which is not even enough to satisfy the ends meet.

 This is all after if a person gets a job, which has become almost impossible in our country even after graduating with a masters degree. This offers companies massive leverage to exploit workers because if the workers resist, they could simply be fired and replaced with the next person in the line. This also results in rock bottom wages for a 12 hour workday.

People often blame the population for the issue which is partially liable  but it does little to explain the issues that are arguably more responsible for the crisis such lack of implementation of labour laws, Indian culture, unemployment and the fact that Indian government itself engages in a lot of exploitation and tacitly allows the exploitation to occur as they think this trade off is for so called ‘economic development’. For example: The labour ministry has suggested a maximum of 12 working hours per day, including breaks, as part of the draft regulations for the Occupational Safety, Health, and Working Conditions (OSH) Code 2020, which was approved by Parliament in 2020.

Arguably the biggest culprit is the Indian culture, which often promotes these kinds of exploitation in the name of hard work. People who raise concerns about the conditions are often labelled as crybabies who don’t want to work. Another issue is that Indians often look work as sacred and something which shouldn’t be criticised. This also plays well with the conservative and hierarchical families which most people are raised and are told not to question anything.

This is why we can many Indian CEO’s often rant about how Indians should accept and work long hours and they shouldn’t cry about it.

For example:

1. Bhavesh Aggarwal, Ola's India chief, who expressed that he did not believe in the idea of work-life balance. He stated that if one enjoys their work, they would find happiness in both life and work, leading to a harmonious existence.

2.N.R. Narayana Murthy, the founder of Infosys, faced criticism for his proposal that the youth should commit to working 70 hours a week for the country's development. This backlash came from various quarters, including software engineers, HR professionals in the IT sector, and trade unions.

3.In 2022, Shantanu Deshpande, the founder of Bombay Shaving Company, urged young people to stop complaining about working hours. He advised that new employees should be ready to put in 18-hour days during the first four to five years of their careers.

These types of rhetoric directly come from the society in which people are raised in the country.

This leads us to the recent case of Anna Sebastian Perayil, A chartered accountant at Ernst & Young (EY), who passed away in July, just four months after starting her position. Her parents claim that the intense work pressure from her new job affected her health and ultimately contributed to her death.

Perayil's death attracted attention after her mother, Anita Augustine, wrote a letter to EY that went viral on social media last week. In the letter, she talked about the pressures her daughter faced, like working late and on weekends, and asked EY to "reconsider its work culture" and focus on employee health.

In her heartfelt letter, Anna's mother noted that no one from Ernst & Young came to her daughter's funeral.  

“She paid the ultimate price.”  

“Anna was a top achiever in both school and college, excelled in extracurricular activities, and passed her CA exams with high marks. She devoted herself completely at EY to meet the expectations set for her. However, the overwhelming workload, new surroundings, and long hours took a serious toll on her physical, emotional, and mental well-being,” Anita Augustine stated in her letter to the chairman of EY India.

This is the story of every worker in our country who is being exploited to death.

What can we do about it?

If you're working five days a week, that translates to 14 hours each day. When you factor in two hours of commuting, that adds up to 16 hours daily. Even with a six-day workweek, a person would still be putting in nearly 14 hours a day. Where is the time to actually live? It's unrealistic to expect anyone to work such long hours and remain mentally and emotionally stable.

Around the world, the trend is shifting towards shorter working hours so that people can enjoy life and achieve a better work-life balance. Therefore, the maximum work hours should be limited to eight per day or 40 per week. The Government of India should implement laws to establish this 40-hour workweek for all employees in organized sectors.

Could we explore the idea of a four-day workweek, encouraging employees to take three days off with proportional pay? How can we inspire young people to use this extra time for creative activities, travel, personal growth, and spending more time with family?

The essence of life is not only to work but enjoy living, not to get trapped in a rat race for wealth at the expense of our well-being. By reducing working hours, we can create more job opportunities, which can help tackle unemployment as well.

Reducing work hours can create more job opportunities by encouraging companies to hire extra staff to keep up with work demands. This change can also allow for job sharing, giving more people a chance to work. A shorter workweek improves work-life balance, reduces stress, and boosts job satisfaction, which might lead businesses to grow and hire more employees. It can also attract a wider range of talent, including caregivers and students. Overall, more job openings can help the economy grow, as increased spending encourages further business development.

Let’s focus on living our lives fully rather than merely working long hours to benefit others, sacrificing our health, love, and happiness in the process. It’s essential to have time to savour the rewards of our efforts.