New
Delhi: The Seventh Pay Commission is expected to reward the central government
by its recommendation on abolishing 18 days gazetted holidays and to provide
three days national holidays to central government employees to reform the work
culture in central government offices.
Pay
commission sources said the number of holidays should come down to improve work
culture.
The
sources also added, “A survey has revealed that India has the highest number of
gazetted holidays per year and close on her heels are her Asian neighbours like
Philippines, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia. We need to cut down on holidays to
facilitate more work culture.”
The sources
argued that the government offices worked only for 196 days in India in a year.
Besides, whenever there was election, the government servants were pressed into
election work. This affected the routine government business, sources
contended.
Earlier,
the sixth central pay commission recommended that central government offices
should remain closed only on three national holidays (Republic Day,
Independence Day and Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti) and all other gazetted holidays
should be abolished and the number of restricted holidays (optional) depending
on one’s religious persuasion should be increased from two to eight days.
The
Seventh Central Pay Commission is also likely to make suggestion for flexible
work hours for women and employees with disabilities.
Flexible
working gives them greater choice over when and where they work, allowing them
to better manage their work-life balance
“As
flexi working hours will allow women central government employees to strike a
balance between her professional and family responsibility, maintain healthy
lifestyles and contribute to parenting well, it is recommended for the same and
urge upon the government to work out the modalities in this direction,” the pay
panel source said.
“Flexible
working can also provide central government employees with disabilities with a
‘bridge’ into retirement. Many of surveys show that often the complete loss of
professional work account of disability can leave employees with disabilities
feeling depressed and unmotivated, even to the point of affecting mental
health. Flexible working time can help employees with disabilities delay
retirement without giving up too much of their hard-earned freedom.” said an
official.
//copy// TST
