Want a developed Kerala? Stop treating govt as primary job provider

What are the first thoughts that come to mind on hearing ‘police’ or ‘armed forces’? For some, it will be law enforcement, investigation of crimes and national defence. For others, it may be the security and perks of being a government employee. If the latter view is more dominant, there is a problem: that of the government being viewed more as a provider of good jobs and less as a provider of governance. Going by the numbers applying for the public sector jobs, it seems the government is viewed more as a job provider– both in Kerala and the rest of India.

Currently, the state is seriously discussing both the bureaucracy and the underfunding of public healthcare. But what is not discussed is the impact of the Pay Commission and recruitment practices on governance and society, especially when the next panel is anticipated.

How governance is compromised
When salaries of government employees are raised almost as a ritual every six years, one of the unintended consequences is compromised governance. Recruiting one more person means making an unalterable commitment to paying salary and pension (or contributing to it) for decades. A hike in salary for a budget-constrained state means that at a higher salary, the state can afford to recruit fewer people. And that number could be less than the one required for proper governance.

Add to it Kerala’s uniqueness  – here government has to be everything to everyone. Thus we have a privately owned, profit-making bus service along with the cash guzzling, loss-making KSRTC. Hence core services of state such as policing, food safety, public healthcare, public education, disaster relief, etc. are under-staffed or under-equipped or both.

Whose interests pay raises serve
A rise in pay is cheered by the incumbent government servants as well as those aspiring to get in. Yet, does a higher salary really serve the latter’s interest? Certainly not because the high costs of a regular employee is offset by the government through increasing contractualisation - the state can get the same work done through contract labour at a fraction of the cost of regulars. This also impacts the quality of public services – when a guest faculty gets a fraction of the pay the regular faculty gets for teaching the same subject, will he/she be as committed as the regular one?

Muddling the picture is the job security of regulars -  when the regular employee is assured of being employed irrespective of the quality of work, will he/she be committed in the first place? A far better option is recruiting more regular employees at a lesser, yet reasonable pay.

Where the aspirants end up 
Though recruitment by the Kerala government has shown a decreasing trend, the fascination of the applicants has seen no let-up. An increasing number of applicants and reduced vacancies mean more intense competition. Most applicants think they will be the ones good enough to be selected, whereas a huge majority won’t be selected.

Complicating the picture is the wide age band for many of the posts – this multiplies the attempts an aspirant could take. And where does the unsuccessful majority end up when they exhaust all their attempts? They are in their 30s (or in some cases even 40s) with no jobs, no skills and low morale. For most entry-level posts, the criterion for selection (or rather elimination) is rote memorisation of facts which is pretty much useless elsewhere in the job market.

Contrast this with a UPSC civil services aspirant, who also has failed to clear the final interview – that person comes away with a deeper understanding of public policy and a better grasp of Indian policy making, along with a deeper dive into the optional subject chosen, all of which are valuable elsewhere in the job market.

The question our youngsters should be asking
Many youngsters ask why the state recruits fewer people and not more. But is that the question they should be asking? Even for welfare states, funding comes from growth. The way out is a smaller yet more focused state that helps individuals flourish through economic freedom. Thus, the question our youngsters should be asking is why the number of well-paying private sector jobs is low in Kerala.

The state has educated labour force, excellent road, rail and air connectivity, wide telecom and internet connectivity – all the right ingredients, yet the chef seems to have chosen the wrong recipe! A case in point is the state of the IT sector in Kerala. The first technopark of India came up in Thiruvananthapuram way back in 1990, and where are we 35 years later?  

Kerala needs to attract more capital, for which ease of doing business is a prerequisite. Equally important is improving the employability of human capital – education alone is not enough. For both of these to happen, a change in the mindset of Keralites is required – the primary job of the government is governance, whereas government jobs are simply a positive side effect and a marginal one at that. To expect the state to be the mainstream employer – that is delusional, and the earlier our youngsters and general public realise this, the better.
(The writer is an ex-banker and currently teaches economics & finance.)