After a hardwork and serious studies of 4 years, my friends and I got our Economics degrees from the University of Karachi. Before jumping into the job market we were all afraid of our future because we had heard stories that in Pakistan, good jobs are only landed by using bribery, influence (sifarish) or other unfair means.
On the contrary, soon enough, most of my University buddies landed themselves good jobs in banking sector which paid them handsomely with attractive perks and all on merit. So it came as a blessing and good surprise that most of us got decent jobs without any unethical means.
At present, most of my friends qualify as part of the burgeoning middle-class, which has been progressing decently by earning good money. They live in comfortable houses, their kids go to good schools, they travel in cars leased from the loans from their banks and they eat fast food. To sum it all up they have the status and the lifestyles that remains a dream of millions of other Pakistanis.
Life is imperfect though. My friends also have their share of problems which is affecting their lives in one way or the other. In most cases, these problem occur due to creeping work hours. In the begining they look harmless and go unnoticed, because they are accepted as a norm of corporate life in Pakistan. But slowly but surely cracks began to appear in the fabric of family life. Earning men and women in Pakistan now find themselves spending more and more time in office and less and less time with thier spouses and children.
Some say it is the norm of corporate culture; Some say it is the way their bosses want them to live their office-lives and some say it is nothing but the way things work in a salaried society. But I want to call it exploitation. Exploitation of making employees sit late in the offices to work like a bullock in fields. The work hours now go well after their scheduled 9-5 timing.
Sitting late in the office is making people perpetually tired and irritated. Wives are getting enormous burden of caring for the whole family without due support from their husbands. It is disturbing the balance at home and can lead to lot more severe repercussions. More and more, wives alone are helping children to do well in studies in stiffer competitions at schools; they do shopping for the whole family including their hubbies alone; they drive cars to pay utility bills and look for plumbers, electricians and what they get at the end of the day? A sleepy and tired husband irked after long and tiring day at job which usually spans around 12-15 hours.
I have come across several people in private companies who work untill midnight just because their companies look to get bulk of work done with the lean work force. In some offices, bosses like to sit late in the offices just to show how efficient and effective they. This puts extra pressure on the staff who also tend to stay late and don’t want to appear as those who dare to leave before the boss.
My brother works in a renowned Pharmaceutical Company where work hours stretch to days. My family has seen him spending nights in the offices sleeping on the office desks because they have to finish a project no matter how and no matter what. Recently, I heard from my brother that one of his colleagues quit the job because his parents, and especially his sick mother couldn’t bear his late sittings after what happened with peace and law in recent months in our country.
Money is important. There is no argument against it. But one should not get so blindedsighted in the greed of it that we fail to understand that money is good only when we can have time to spend and enjoy it.
As increased numbers of heart diseases and heart attacks in Pakistani males has something to do with the kind of culture that prevails at our workplaces. Enormous pressures of getting the most out of our jobs to give better futures to our children are making men and women of Pakistan, money-making machines. Our marriages are also getting disturbed by this trend because wives think of themselves as maids who were brought from their parents houses to tender to husband and his family single-handedly. Children are also getting used to the fact that they have only one person to tell each and everything and that is their mothers because their fathers are always in the office.
We need to understand this and stop this exploitation at the hands of our organizations because we are their employees not their slaves.
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ATP post on Similar topic: Job Security in Corporate Pakistan
On the one hand, I do agree that we need to work hard be it 9-to-5 or 9-to-9. It doesnt matter as long as the job is done, and done so at its best. But I am worried about how people (in this modern professional world of ours) are beginning to sacrifice time with their families and even for themselves. Those who talk about the US/Europe, and how people there work very late and very hard, shouldnt forget about the high divorce rate, neglect to children, personal physical (obesity, heart disease) and emotional health (stress, temperamental disorders) problems prevalent there. And its not just there, I have experienced and discussed similar problems with people in the London (City), Hong Kong etc. People in these places may be more affluent compared to say 40 years ago, but are they happier? I think not! My recent visit to Karachi tells me the corporate/professional culture (mostly in the banking/financial sector I have to say) there is falling into the same trap: professional and financial gain (at the cost of personal and family well-being) is what is highly valued.
But then I do realise that to develop and progress, society on the whole does need to put in a lot of effort, thought and hard work. Social and economic development (both at personal and national levels) does not come easy. Our scientists need to solve our problems, our bankers need to sustain our economy, our academics (and students) do need to pursue rigorously, and our parents/spouses do need to helps us out with this.
I am an academic, spent last 10 years of my life working away, getting the publications, doing the evening tutorial runs, and so on. But lately I think, I try to come home a bit early on days when I can. Those extra couple of hours playing with my kid, talking to my dad and just being around my family, I think are worthed. People tell me I smile more these days. I agree.
Life is a delicate balance, between the mutiple roles that we are forced to adopt and our aspirations (be it material/professional). Every day is an attempt at getting it right – who says its easy…
Well, I agree with [Japanese Name], the work environment is not that bad in the U.S. Anwar is right in some regard; however, the people who do work relentlessly in the U.S. CHOOSE to do so…i.e. they do not do it because they fear losing their jobs. I’m a Ph.D. student and often end up sleeping in the lab, pulling “all-nighters” to crunch numbers and finish manuscripts that were due yesterday, etc….but again, I do it because I enjoy it.
Also, I may have limited experience, but there is one BIG POINT I’d like to mention….I don’t mean to sound cynical, but the vast majority of people in any given workplace, do 1 hour’s work in 10 hours’ time….i.e., most people are not actively working all the time….that is why I like working with people who judge progress in terms of actual work done, as opposed to the number of hours spent.
I used to have co-workers who came in earlier, left later, and were constantly typing…typing God knows what! because their programs always failed, their background knowledge was zero, etc etc.
I don’t know about the divorce rates….but I will say that the Americans, although they talk very big about their “family values”, even making it an issue in elections, the truth is that for most of them the only place their family exists is in the photo album on the shelf.
Work habits are not entirely the cause–part of it is the tremendous and unprecedented mobility of the American workforce, and the unique size of the country.
Nabeel, you should know that Pakistan is a union-free and very union-unfriendly country, like Mexico, and again like Mexico this is state of affairs is kept up to please the Americans and make the country more “investor friendly” for them. Unionization in Pakistan, esp. at white-collar levels will be dealt with very, very harshly.
So, yes, Pakistan’s work environment will continue to change and the traditional family will change too, and there will be good and bad aspects of that to consider.
The views of both the author (that there is exploitation going on) and some of the respondents (that this is just the beginning) both have their merits.i have a few comments.
the changing corporate culture will slowly and gradually change pakistani society as we know and celebrate it now – and soon we will have dysfunctional families if we don’t address this growing trend.
Why don’t those who feel they are being exploited do something about it? why not form unions and try to get their rights? remember it is a two-way relationship.if you deliver as an employee,it will be either a very brave company or a very foolish company that lets you go for standing up for your rights.the company needs you too.
and finally,yes it is true that to succeed you sometimes have to work long hours.it happens everywhere in the world.however,it should not be taken for granted,accepted as a normal routine.companies should be able to structure their schedules and train their workforce to perform efficiently-if not,they are doing themselves,their workforce,society at large,and Pakistan as a country a disservice.
there ARE multiplier effects to after-hours work,as the writer has noted.we are seeing the long term effects of the american corporate culture now in the disintegration of their society.i read somewhere that divorce rates are going up in pakistan – could that be linked to this as well?
and finally,9-5 must be 9-5,not 11-7! ’nuff said!
Hi all,
Does any body knows the names of some popular and effective jobs search sites ir recruiters?
I am a US based Paki want to return home after 16 years of educating and living in the west. Even though the conditions in pak are not very favorable but desperately want to come back home. I have a undergrad in engg and earned a couple of masters (in sciences and business) with 10+ yrs corporate america experience and certifications you name it!
Please help.
Thks,
Abdul
ssa_esqr68@yahoo.com