A Golden Handshake: A solution to Unemployment

The government has so far failed to frame a long-term employment policy. Without one, there is a real danger of our youth going astray—which would not only disrupt but also put unnecessary pressure on our development strategies. As things stand, secure employment often seems reserved for a small circle of well-connected individuals.

According to a recent report by the Ministry of Labour and Human Resources, the national unemployment rate sits at 2.9 percent, while youth unemployment stands at 9.6 percent. That may sound small on paper, but ask any fresh graduate, and they'll tell you it feels much larger.

This year, nearly half of the 3,322 university graduates sat for the preliminary examination to compete for just 434 civil service vacancies. That means at least three graduates are chasing every single government slot. And the unemployment figure keeps rising. The labour ministry's press release claims that the national unemployment rate dropped by 0.3 percent in 2014 compared to 2013—but anyone watching closely knows that number doesn't tell the real story. The government must now start thinking seriously about absorbing graduates into the workforce. One of the most practical ways to do this is to replace aging employees with young, skilled job seekers. The labour force participation rate was estimated at 62.6 percent in 2014 for those between 16 and 45 years of age—a group considered economically active, unlike those who have retired or are nearing retirement.

Google Guru

One promising scheme is the Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS). Under this arrangement, employees are offered a generous, often tax-free, severance package to voluntarily retire from their positions. This is popularly known as a "Golden Handshake"—because it polishes the exit door until it shines. It is a golden route to retrenchment, but done kindly. A golden handshake typically includes cash, stock options, or other incentive packages. It is an agreement between employer and employee to part ways early, voluntarily, and without bad blood. The so-called "golden parachute" is usually dangled as a lure to create job opportunities for young people. And let's be honest—when young people enter jobs, they tend to run faster, learn quicker, and stay awake longer during meetings than some of us oldies.  of creating jobs for an active group of people.

Under this scheme, employees receive better emoluments. They get their provident fund and gratuity dues earlier than usual, which they can use for house construction or family subsistence. It becomes a lucrative settlement that prevents financial resentment in old age. It also offers the most humane route to reducing excess staff. Best of all, because the retirement is voluntary, there's little need for enforcement or hard feelings. The people most likely to take advantage of the Golden Handshake are those who would retire anyway. For example, employees above 50 years of age with more than 25 years of service should be made eligible. If that tenure criterion is adopted, we could easily create 1,000 or more jobs in a single year—far more than the meager 434 civil service slots currently on offer. Offering the Golden Handshake might encourage a few additional employees to retire sooner than planned. And once the bogus sleepers opt for retirement, the new hires would bring fresh energy, new ideas, and higher overall job quality. If the Golden Handshake doesn't fit, there is another option. A Lump Sum Incentive Program could be introduced, where retirement-eligible employees are offered a one-time lump sum payment. This could include cash, a house, stock options, or other lifelong benefits in exchange for the personal sacrifice of early retirement. For example, any employee at least 50 years old who retires by the close of the fiscal year could receive such an incentive. Either way, the message is clear: doing nothing is no longer an option. Our youth are waiting. And their patience—unlike their unemployment rate—is running thin.

Darla School Annual Concert

Darla School is gearing up for its upcoming Annual Concert, which will take place over two days on August 28th and 29th, 2015. The school has been preparing for almost a month for the final show. Different in-charges and coordinators have been assigned various items to practice. Students, teachers, and the school as a whole have been busy after school—so busy, in fact, that no one could even think about hanging around and losing time like that. Because in Darla, free time is suspicious.

As the days crawl nearer, students and teachers bump here and there looking for participants, only to discover their own participants have been hijacked by other programs. It's a logistical circus. On the bright side, each student is allowed to take part in only three items to ensure maximum participation. This rule is also not taken very seriously by our students. During rehearsals, there were some students taking part in four or more items. So be it, I say. Good dancers should. Even monkeys can dance when the music is on. (No offense to the dancers. Or the monkeys.)

Our teachers, students, and councilors are also busy selling tickets for the show. The cost of a ticket this year is Nu. 80, up from Nu. 70 last year. This price hike has been the most mauled and ranted topic in the school when it comes to any collection. "Where does the money go?" "Isn't this too much?" These are some of the not-so-sweet talks floating among our students. And honestly? Sometimes the criticism is true.

Last year, the show made a huge amount of money. And then? Silence. There was a presentation in one of the various meetings stating that the money was used for buying stage decoration clothes and related items. But the stage remained the same—or actually became poorer than before. The back wall of the stage is scratched, smeared, and blotted with so many tints of colors that it looks like an abstract painting gone wrong. The floor planks have become shaking pendulums, risky for our participants and excellent for building ankle injuries. There were no musical instruments, no lighting amenities, no good sound boxes, and—to put it bluntly—NO. But YES when it comes to working? Curious.

Anyway. We hope everything will be better this year. And hope we must. It's all we have left.

Like last year, our Darla community will come and watch the show. The show is all about showcasing the talents and abilities of our—and your—students. This show is dedicated and honored to our Fourth Druk Gyalpo and Je Khenpo on their 60th birth anniversary. The school is also building a Jangchub Chorten for the well-being of all.

Come, watch the differences! (Hopefully the good kind. But bring a cushion. Those planks are unforgiving.)

All set to go with the ticket on circulation

Invitation cards send to every individual around the school

Human Values Workshop

Darla School staff attended a Human Values Workshop in Gedu for three days, beginning August 13th to 15th. I am reproducing some of the important topics the workshop covered during this period—partly for posterity, partly because I paid attention and now you all have to suffer.

During the feedback session, everyone said how changed they were at the end of the workshop. Apparently, three days in Gedu can undo a lifetime of bad habits. Who knew? In the beginning, the content felt quite similar to our eight-fold paths—and it actually was derived from there. So essentially, we paid for a refresher course on things we already believed in. But let's not be cynical. Yet.

The session started with this proposal—an ambiguous one, designed to make your brain tilt slightly:

"Whatever is said is a Proposal. Do not assume it to be true or false. Verify it on your own right—on the basis of your natural acceptance."

In other words: don't believe us. But also don't disbelieve us. Just… feel it. Naturally.

The workshop also defined the role of education with great seriousness:

"The role of education is to facilitate the development of the competence to live with Definite Human Conduct."

Not just any conduct. Definite conduct. No vagueness allowed. We're here to produce decent human beings, not wishy-washy ones.

According to the workshop, transformation equals development. Yes, same thing. No difference. Change a little, develop a lot. Here is the diagrammatic summary of human values—because nothing says "spiritual growth" like a flowchart.

Transformation = Development

Right Understanding is all we need

And Preconditioning leads to many undesirable activities

 

The self and body...i like this part the most. Everything submerges in the space. Where does the self go from the space? 

Payment is NOT Enough

The salary I get by the end of the month is finely calculated and then finely split—like a poor man's magic trick. There are times when my meager salary cannot make a single day stay in the account. It's good, I suppose, that it doesn't occupy much space in the bank. By the end of the month, the credit would amount to Nu. 10,000 or more, leaving me still in debt. I hardly get Nu. 13,000. Let me show you where it all disappears.

How My Money Splits in a Month:

1. House rent: Nu. 2,500

2. TV bill: Nu. 300 (for the privilege of watching ads and old movies)

3. Electric bill: Nu. 100+ (depending on how many lights I forget to switch off)

4. Car petrol: Nu. 1,500 or more, depending on "emergency" (translation: visiting family)

5. School collection: Nu. 500, sometimes more than 1,000 (the mystery fund)

6. Miscellaneous donations (religious purposes): Nu. 300 (for the soul)

7. Visiting sick people: Nu. 300 or more (for the conscience)

8. Visiting relatives: Nu. 300 or more (for the guilt)

9. Veggies, rice, and general fooding: Nu. 3,000 (for staying alive, annoyingly necessary)

10. For a child: Nu. 200 (the cheapest part of this list, thankfully)

Total: Nu. 10,000

The salary I actually get now is Nu. 13,314—after a heavy loan deduction. The meager amount is not really enough. Expenditure escalates beyond what I receive sometimes. We don't have any money left for holidaying or family trips. A vacation, in this economy, is a dream that requires its own fundraiser.

This is a little bill of a rough calculation incurred in this month and is prepared by my wife.

And this donation comes frequently.

I really feel that teachers and doctors and hospital staff must be paid handsomely. Because services like teaching are, as someone wisely put it, "sitting penniless on a beach job"—except there is no beach, no sun, and definitely no umbrella drink. No TA/DA, no training, no outside tour, no nothing. Only a dry and meager monthly salary that evaporates before the month does.

I hardly know how to fill out a TA/DA form. Sometimes I fail to even say what TA/DA stands for. (Travel Allowance / Dearness Allowance, apparently. I had to look it up. Twice.)

So here's to another month of calculated suffering and a bank account that echoes.

Darling, Be Daring

I wrote this poem dedicating to my new blog titled: ‘Darling, Be daring.’ My previous title was ‘a wise voice.’

On your way, when everything is dark,

When long nights confuse you,

And when you are frightened-

Be daring, darling.

There lies a hidden hope of tomorrow.

When words are a storm

That could break your ribs

And leave you numb-

Be daring, darling.

Let them go.

When life is getting you down
with one little unfulfilled thought

That could packed up everything-

Be daring, darling.

There are so many options in life.

To keep standing firm

And to keep marching on

Through these twists and turns-

Be daring, darling.

Live on a path of hope.

When you cry out everything you have felt,
Hoping that someone will pick it up-
But the truth is what I say:

Be daring, darling.

Hope that one day, somebody keeps your wise voice.

PemaGatshel Throme

Of late, there have been lots of hullabaloos about the Dzongkhag Thromde in Pemagatshel. And when I say hullabaloos, I mean Facebook has turned into a battlefield. The issue is radical, and people have suddenly discovered rights they didn't know they had. Pemagatshel is the only Dzongkhag left without any thromde—neither Yenlag nor Dzongkhag. Yes, zero. Nada. We are the proud owners of nothing.

On social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, you can read so many hurling abuses and creative comments left by the literate (and very opinionated) people of Pemagatshel. It's like a festival, but with more typing and less food.

One Citizen Speaks

Lucky Semsel wrote in the Facebook group called Pemagatshepa:

"If you look at the present Pemagatshel Dzong area, you won't see any major developments. Things have not changed for decades in terms of development. Now, the dzong is under construction in Denchi, and the Dzongkhag area will also eventually shift to the new location. However, if Denchi is not identified as the Dzongkhag town, everything will be the same again. No developments will take place there. On the contrary, Nganglam is bound to prosper as a big business hub whether it is identified as Dzongkhag town or not. Should there be rainfall where there is already abundant water? Or should the rain fall in the desert?"

Wise words. Or maybe just frustrated words. Either way, Lucky touched a nerve.

The Great Poll War

The most popular and thorough discussion revolves around a poll posted by Sangay Choki. It has now crossed more than 500 comments—which, for a small Dzongkhag, is basically a national referendum. Most people are voting for Denchi.

Poll: Thromde in Pemagatshel
Which one do you prefer as Thromde in Pemagatshel?

· Nganglam is more appropriate
· Denchi is more appropriate

And likewise, there are many opinions and views about the Thromde. Most of them are dissatisfied. Some are just spicy.

My Humble (But Long) Opinion

I truly believe that Gatshelpas have not been taken fairly. We have been deliberately abandoned, like a forgotten umbrella at a bus stop. There was only Dasho Zanglay Drukpa folding his hands and saying that a Thromde should be in Denchi. NC Jigme Rinzin was not supporting either place. What is that? And that woman—whoever she was—didn't even exist there. So much for representation.

I personally prefer Dzongkhag Thromde in Denchi. And here are my reasons—because ten is a nice round number:

1. The Dzong is so near. You can almost throw a stone at it. Not that you should.
2. Denchi has eight jacketing Gewogs. That's a lot of jackets. And people.
3. It was already planned by the DPT government. Where is the logic if the plan changes every time a new government is formed? Consistency, anyone?
4. Denchi is safer than bordering places. No uninvited guests sneaking in at night.
5. Nganglam is far-flung from the Dzong. If the Dzong were established there, people from eight gewogs would need packed lunch just to reach it.
6. Nganglam will develop inevitably as it's a border area. It doesn't need our pity. Or our thromde.
7. Nganglam will be a regional town, not a Dzongkhag thromde. Let's not confuse the two.
8. Nganglam was not even in Pemagatshel five years ago. Latecomers shouldn't jump the queue.
9. Denchi has two big rivers nearby. People could catch fish to feed their lives—true story. Also, to develop a town, a river is necessary. Look at any good city in the world without a big river nearby. I'll wait.
10. Pemagatshel has no town then. Zero. Let that sink in.

The fact is, we wouldn't have any hard feelings in our mind if it weren't for ONE person. Yes, ONE. This happened because of ONE leader when Bhutan first had a transition in the government system. He came out of nowhere, declaring he was from Pemagatshel. Where was the connection—west and east? Who knows. But he wooed and melted the hearts of women. He easily won.

If he were in power now, Gatshelpas would have been more fortunate. We would have got what everyone else got. And here's the twist: if he had not contested first from Pemagatshel, we might have been even more fortunate. Irony, thy name is politics.

Now, half sunshine is all that remains. He couldn't just leave what he had created, abandoning Gatshelpas in this situation. So I say: You are our messiah. Please come back. We are flawed. We admit it.

I personally have very high regard for this person—as a leader, as a developer, as an inspirer. He is my role model. Everyone liked him. Even my grandmother. But now, the thinking of the government has changed. And everything has been sidelined. And this, my friends, is politics.

A Quote to Exit

I will leave with a quote from Kamala Das's An Introduction:

"I don't know politics but I know the names
Of those in power, and can repeat them like
Days of week, or names of months, beginning with..."

Let's just say I know the names. And I know where I want my thromde.



Note: The above views are personal and don't intend to hurt anyone directly or indirectly. Unless you are against Denchi. Then maybe a little.