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Untimely idleness
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The Voluntary Retirement Scheme offered by many banks and PSUs has evoked a mixed feeling among people who have accepted it. While some are regretting being jobless, they seem to enjoy a relaxed life.
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RAMAMANI SIVAKUMAR, 47, working in Bank of Baroda, was tired of her hectic life.
Rushing to office in the morning after completing the household chores and back into the kitchen in the evening, she hardly had any time to call her own. Besides, there was always the guilt feeling that she couldn't attend to the needs of her two daughters.
The pressure was too much, but Ramamani continued, since she didn't have an alternative.
And then came an opportunity to get rid of the hectic life — Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS).
The package offered by the bank was quite attractive monetarily. Shrewd investment schemes of the retirement benefits will give her the same returns she was earning.
So, why not call it a day? And that's what she did. So did many others.
It is over a year since the first phase of VRS was introduced in public sector banks and other PSUs for downsizing.
Lakhs of people came forward for the golden handshake. In banks alone, the figure crossed 90,000.
They decided to take life easy and enjoy an early retirement or, switch over to other avenues.
But how do they feel now? It's time to take stock.
"I have no regrets,'' says Ramamani, who took VRS nine months ago. "I am happy to be around when my daughters need me. Earlier, I felt guilty for not being able to spend much time with them."
For K.Srinivasan, 57, who took VRS from a foreign bank, it is freedom from tensions at the workplace.
He spends most of his time correcting his Tamil grammer, learning computer applications and catching up with his first love — books.
He also helps his working wife in the household chores. Post VRS, Chandra Jaganathan in her early fifties, finds time for beachside walks and net surfing.
``I look for finance related news on the net and chat with my children in the U.S." Apparently, the joy of being with the family sans the work tension is bliss to women who have opted for VRS.
There is also a flip side to the scene. For instance, Gopal, 40, was happy with his job in a public sector enterprise. Although he was ambitious, he lacked the academic qualifications for more lucrative careers. But when his loss-making unit decided to close down, he was forced to take voluntary retirement.
Today, Gopal is a depressed man, unable to come to terms with this unexpected turn in his life.
So it is with C. Sankaranarayanan, whose plans of getting a job elsewhere failed. "I was banking on my 30-year work experience, but there seem to be no takers. Companies go by age. So, there's no place for a fifty plus like me.''
The falling interest rates too have affected the VRS beneficiaries. Is VRS a bane or a boon is the big question.
Will it help build a strong and requisite workforce and encourage individuals to invest money in new enterprises, or will it lead to huge unemployment, the kind that Japan experienced during the recent recession?
When Singapore's economy hit a low in 1997-98, the Government and companies encouraged the employees to upgrade their skills to match the changing work environment.
The aim was to make the transition less painful for the people. Some of those who took VRS were not actually ready for the negative fallout. ``I am embarrassed to tell people I am idle,'' says a former bank employee.
Most of them have not been able to find alternate jobs, unable to match to the modern management skills, attitude and age.
The only option is to tap their experience and turn consultants or entrepreneurs. Or, be content with a peaceful retired life.
ARUNA SRINIVASAN
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