Working days must be reduced to five
Many reforms that government employees initially oppose turn out to be the most beneficial when implemented. The initial opposition to computerisation by officials is a prime example of this. Even bank employees' organisations had protested against the installation of computers. The workload of officials was actually reduced by one-tenth after the introduction of computers. To know whether an application had been received in an office, one only has to press a button on the computer that has stored the information related to it. Before computers, an official had to thoroughly examine the file containing the applications. The effort and time required for this used to increase the workload of the official and delay administrative procedures!
Computerisation was implemented in India by selecting various departments in stages. Employees of other departments also started demanding computers when the officials of the departments where computers were installed realised that their workload was reduced. The present situation is such that there will be a huge protest if the government says that it will eliminate computers. Just like computers, fixing the working day to five days a week is a reform that will be very beneficial for government employees. The employees' organisations are generally opposed to this. However, they will realise its benefits only when it is implemented. In modern times, it is not the number of hours worked that matters, but the quality of work done in the shortest time.
When the working days are reduced to five, the government's expenditure will be significantly reduced without taking any special measures. Central government employees work only five days a week. Can anyone say that all the activities of the central government are being carried out slowly because of this? Many expert studies have pointed out that the efficiency of employees increases when working days are reduced. The second Saturday is already a holiday for government employees. Therefore, declaring three more Saturdays as holidays will be enough to reduce the working days to five. When Saturday and Sunday are holidays, it will be more convenient for government officials to attend to their family matters and spend more time with their children. Traffic on Saturdays and air pollution due to fuel burning will be reduced to a large extent.
At the same time, employees are concerned that some of the benefits they have received so far will be lost when such a reform comes. The prime concern is the fear of losing casual leave. It is a legitimate concern. If this reform can be implemented without losing casual leave, the government should also consider preparing for it. When offices are closed for one more day a week, the government can save crores of rupees a month by avoiding other expenses, including electricity, water, and internet. Since many government affairs have gone online now, this will not be an issue that affects the people as much as it used to. Therefore, it would be appropriate to reduce the working day of government employees to five. Currently, most states in India do not have six working days. It cannot be said that the efficiency of the offices there has decreased because of this.