Back What to do when child labour is the means of a family's subsistence?
Story so far: Shouting slogans and carrying placards against outsourcing, bankers go on strike. Not far away though is the lunch-hour rush from BPOs. I remember hearing voices against outsourcing from developed countries. But a protest against outsourcing within the country seems odd to me, especially when India is acknowledged as an outsourcing destination. Are bankers, therefore, fighting a losing battle, I wonder?
Episode 140
"Dear Swati, outsourcing is not a recent phenomenon," writes Anil Kumar Pillai, Faculty, School of Communication & Management Studies, Kochi. "We have seen in many industries that if an activity can be done cheaper, or if such activity does not form the core, it can be outsourced." Quite true.
Anil says we should consider outsourcing implications from two different angles — organisation and employees. "For an organisation if it is profitable to allow a different entity to do its activities for them, then it makes economic sense. But if outsourcing replaces labour, employees are bound to protest. Keeping this in view, if the organisation does not outsource, and if its competitor is able to cut costs through outsourcing, the result is that the firm would lose its business."
How does that apply to banks? "In banking, if MNC banks could do the same process at a lower cost than some of our major banks, the latter will not survive. When the banks do not survive, will the employees survive?" Bitter but real question!
"Therefore HR (human resources/relations) departments of banks should play a vital role to resolve this issue in terms of redeployment of the personnel affected by outsourcing," insists Anil. "Employees should change their way of thinking and develop themselves to take on newer roles. Then it would be a win-win situation both for the organisation and employees." Detailed analysis. Wonder if trade unions would view things that way.
The next mail is from Pankaj S. from Rajasthan. He affirms that bankers indeed are fighting a losing battle against outsourcing. More so when the Indian economy is flourishing because of outsourcing by developed countries. "At this juncture the approach of trade unions in the banking sector is, ostrich-like thinking of the dinosaurian type! They do not realise that there are no takers for the poor and inefficient variety of services they offer." Exactly!
"Consumer is the king and all other players have to adapt themselves to consumer demand. The writing on the wall is clear: if you do not change, you are doomed to perish. The losing market share of PSU banks is a clear signal of their losing battle. Also, strike as an instrument of bargaining has lost its edge." I guess people like Pankaj may be a minority in the banking sector, too intimidated by the more vociferous opponents.
"Hi Swati, this is Saravanan from Tiruchi," reads the next mail, starting cheerfully. "Finished B.Com. from Bishop Heber College. Currently I am preparing for CAT. Before I pen my thoughts, let me thank you as you get everyone very involved in the subjects as well as current issues. Every Monday, we discuss your topic in our classrooms and it ends with a big debate. Last time, I missed writing about shoplifting... " Great to know about your class' interest, Saravanan K. R.
"Yes, bankers are ready to protest. Whenever we say outsourcing in the public sector, we get frightened. It shows that our people are not ready to take risks. We have eminent persons at the helm of the central bank and in the Finance Ministry. Worth trying out their ideas because that can give good results. Today everything is going global, especially outsourcing. At these times, it is important that we change ourselves. Strikes won't give us good results. Such protests will degrade our country's value," writes Saravanan.
"Swati, it is the style of employees union to stoutly oppose any change or innovation in the beginning. It is nothing but a strategy to bring their management to the negotiation table. They would then discuss or debate the problem threadbare. They will offer useful suggestions too, to protect the interests of the bank employees. Thereafter they will clear the proposal with some changes/modifications." Thus writes Ayyappa Ramalingam
"When bank managements contemplated computerisation, a few years ago, the issue was taken to the streets. They raised slogans such as `automation-anti-nation'. After gaining some benefits for the existing employees and after incorporating some safety nets, it was cleared. At present they are not protesting in vain. They are not fighting a losing battle. Trade union leaders are highly intelligent.
"They knew very well that as in computerisation/ATMs/core banking, whatever the risk involved, the same is inevitable in the age of globalisation. Their objections are like muttukattai (pegs) applied every now then when the temple car is moving. Muttukattai is applied not to prevent the movement but to ensure proper movement to enable the temple's car reach the destination safely." Insightful analogy, Ayyappa.
"Dear Swati, the wheel has come a full circle. It is a harsh truth that India, a preferred destination for outsourcing, has to show the spirit in proving to the rest of world that we too acknowledge and accept outsourcing as part of the current globalisation trend," writes Sriram Kannan.
"Though bank employees are fighting against the inevitable, we must ensure that their experience and knowledge do not go waste. Moreover handling the `modern Indian consumer' requires more than basic telephonic and voice modulation skills. Indians, by nature, would always want to experience the service firsthand before committing themselves to it. Hence, it would be advisable that the core banking function be retained with the banks," suggests Sriram. "This ensures two things," he explains.
"First, the trust and confidence built all these years by the bank do not go down the drain. And second, the next time, when you visit the bank branch, the clerks at the enquiry would check your bank balance and not their mobile phone's account balance!" A dig, that is, of staff attending to personal work! Well, customers are increasingly intolerant of such aberrations.
"Dear Swati garu, nowadays banks have begun to consider outsourcing because it is cheaper and a more effective way of getting things done," says P. V. Sudhakar Rao of Ongole. "Public at large do not sympathise with bank employees agitating against outsourcing as it is not for public welfare. And it is up to the employer to decide on policy matters. Let us remember that bank employees' agitation could not prevent computerisation." A point of relevance, Sudhakar.
"Outsourcing is only going to grow in terms of volume and types of activities," feels Krithivasan. "Two major drivers for this are: i) need to specialise/improve on one's own core competencies and related areas; and ii) reducing the costs. Gone are the days when Indian managements, including banks, were trying to do everything themselves. With improvements in technology, and the need to specialise and globalise, outsourcing has become inevitable. Public sector and older private sector banks cannot remain isolated from the strategies being adopted by the new private and foreign banks, if they need to be in the market and improve their product offerings and visibility." Thanks!
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The load on children
Sometime back, a colleague of mine had evinced interest in buying a flat in my locality and, therefore, requested me to find out details of any upcoming flats. Guilty that I hadn't given him any inputs, I set out one particularly hot afternoon, in search of construction activity. At more than one site, I was pained to find children employed to do manual tasks such as carrying bricks and sand.
In a posh locality, I noticed that a girl of about 12 years of age, dressed in tatters, was carrying a heavy burden on her head. Impulsively, I felt that I should march up to the contractor and register my protest and threaten to call the cops if the children weren't withdrawn from work. But I paused, because she was weeping. "Why?" I asked. "Mother is not well," she said, amidst sobs. "I have to buy her medicine with my coolly (wages)... " her voice trailed, because she had moved into the compound.
"Oft labouring for destiny make cruel way..." I remembered from Troilus and Cressida. Would it be right to ban child labour and deprive a family of its means of earning, I wondered, even as my bike took me aimlessly through roads, one leading to another. Send in your thoughts by Friday.
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