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For all the brickbats the public sector has received for its inefficiencies, it is still seen as a good poaching ground for domestic and global private companies seeking experienced personnel. At first it was the oil majors and VSNL that witnessed an outflow of experienced staff to the private sector entering the field. Now it is the turn of the Indian Railways that is watching skilled people from almost every department make tracks for the more lucrative private sector. Two years ago, Spoornet, a major mover of rail freight in South Africa, placed large orders for locomotives from India; along with the locos it also wanted locomotive drivers, and many left their havens for stints with Spoornet. Now personnel from the highly specialised signalling and telecom divisions of the Indian Railways are leaving for greener pastures.

At first glance, it appears an inevitable loss for a sector that has been losing the commanding position it enjoyed for decades. But to the extent that public utilities such as the Railways continue to play the role they do in moving goods and people across the country, to the extent that the oil majors still enjoy a pre-eminence in the petroleum sector, it behoves them to remain competitive in terms of skill and talent retention. That means better pay, a feature that figured prominently in the deliberations of the Sixth Pay Commission. One of the oft-repeated demands from employee organisations was for some kind of parity with private sector peers. Small wonder that the Indian Railways has already factored in a Rs 4,500-crore expense for salary hikes based on the Commission’s recommendations. That amount would have seemed gigantic some years back but with cash surpluses having almost trebled to Rs 25,000 crore this year, the Indian Railways can afford to be generous. But will the increments staunch the bleed? In all likelihood they will not, for the same reason that the CSIR’s “Quick Hire Scheme” for young Indian scientists from around the world will not.

For one, the public sector cannot match the compensation of private players, least of all those offered by multinationals. For another, the private sector beats the public sector in the one tangible benefit that seduces talent; the merit-based reward system. When CSIR scientists or signalling personnel from the railways leave for the private sector they sacrifice the safety of government jobs for the risk-loaded opportunity of good pay and faster promotions. To retain them, the government needs to reorient its personnel policy towards a productivity-linked compensation, at least for specialised skills. The Sixth Pay Commission may provide some relief but not for long.

More Stories on : Editorial | Human Resources | Railways

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