Holidays and hartals

The government's two-day week-end got started on the 16th. Today is hartal called by the CPB. Tomorrow is a working day. The 20th is a national religious holiday, followed by a hartal on the 21st. The 22nd is again a working day and then we break again for a two-day weekend!

The toll that will be taken in economic terms is tremendous. Business will come to a virtual standstill until the 25th, and the import and export sector will be particularly inconvenienced. The confluence of all these days off so close together points to the folly both of the two-day week-end and the hartal culture, and shows how when it comes to slowing down the economy, the government and the opposition can work hand in hand.

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More troublingly, the long break seems to us to be a logical extension of the lackadaisical approach to the work culture that prevails among many sectors of the economy. For too long showing up to work late, taking long lunch and tea breaks, and leaving early have been an accepted part of our government and corporate culture in Bangladesh.

This is all part of a larger pattern that includes the hartal culture, that tends not to place enough emphasis on the work ethic and accepts stoppages and delays in the work day as a matter of course.

We have already opined as to how a Friday-Saturday week-end is problematic as it keeps us out of the loop internationally. The same goes for hartals. One cannot just bring commerce grinding to a halt and hope to be competitive.

We live in a globalised world today and we must operate at the pace of the world and according to international norms if we wish to advance. The work ethic, working hours, professionalism, and productivity of some other Asian countries is what we should be trying to emulate.