The Extinct ‘Human’ in the Capitalist Economy

Pransu Raj Kaushik

One never knows what twist lies ahead of you in life. Everything can change in a moment. In the present scenario of employment, one has to remain forever prepared for sudden and almost drastic situations such as being served with a release from service. From being a well-settled corporate executive a person may suddenly find oneself in unwarranted doldrums. Being jobless in the present times is almost as good as being restrained without any personal freedom. The most difficult part is dealing with the psychological impact that one has to experience because of the many inherent factors associated with being an unemployed person. From what I have observed, the initial reaction is of disbelief, thereafter comes the ‘why me’ factor and then the gradual acceptance of the situation.

The liberalization of the economy and reforms in the labour sector (labour laws) have no doubt brought about positive changes in the way business is done. In a nutshell there have been positive additions in the ease of doing business. But has anyone ever given a thought about the pitfalls of having a fully market-driven economy on the human factor? Perhaps there have been studies on the same and I would love to be proven wrong on it, but I think that any report coming out of that sort of a study probably has been gathering dust somewhere in the nooks of some research institute. Corporate behavioural studies need to be undertaken to expertly document the various negative psychological and physical ‘abuse’ that a corporate professional faces. Behind the smartly attired executive lies a person who might be undergoing immense psychological pressure to meet the sometimes ridiculous demands of what success implies in the corporate world.

Let me cite the example of the tea sector. The executive of a tea estate is almost always portrayed as a villain in the eyes of the general public which unfortunately has little or no knowledge of the industry at all, when it comes to the estate management supposedly not fulfilling the needs of the workers. If we delve deep into the workings of the tea industry vis-a-vis Assam in particular, it may be very prudent to say that the executives are in fact a much harassed lot. They are the easy scapegoats for all and sundry. Whether it is the media, the political class and workers’ bodies, the tea estate manager is for them what I would term to be a ‘blood-sucker’. He virtually has no rights. He can be sacked without notice; physically abused by workers, portrayed a villain by the mainstream. So much for being just a simple executive cadre employee of a private sector company! This is abuse of the worst kind.

I remember watching a movie starring youth heartthrob Ranbir Kapoor, Rocket Singh- Salesman of the Year. The movie depicts an almost perfect image of the scenario prevalent in the sales sector. The corporate bullying, humiliation of non-performers, politics and bickering are some of the factors which have been well portrayed in the movie. Every morning the higher-ups call up their subordinates and fix a target for the day. Now the young executive’s day starts with a veiled ‘threat’, if he does not fulfil his target, his job may not be there by the following day. This portrayal might be blatant, but is true in most cases. Imagine a twenty something with the sword of Damocles, in this case represented by the sales target, hanging over his head and trying to fulfil the target as desirably possible with all other pressures associated with life taking a backseat. And, after all the heckling and fervent pleas trying to fulfil the demands of his job, he mostly sits on a thin line, the line of uncertainty.

What more could I say of the global millions who are most brazenly categorized under the heading ‘laid off’? As a student of management, I was taught about the most important resource in any organization being the human resource. I cannot fathom as to what has happened to this dictum. Maybe the pressures of economics of scale have a heavier tilt towards profitability and marketability than being humane in the modern discourse of corporate management. The concept of hire and fire is similar to use and discard; only difference being the use of varied connotations.

As I pen this article, my eyes roll over towards my baby who is soundly asleep on his cot, oblivious to the happenings around. I feel sorry for the state of human emotions. Yes, I have rightly said, it is human emotions that I feel sorry for. Human emotions are dying a slow but sure death; at least some of the aspects such as compassion, the quality of listening and of forgiveness have eroded over the years. Perhaps it is the demand of time that has made us, the human race, more cyborg like. I pity my child. I can only hope and wait and see if he too, turns out to be a cyborg in his day or remains a human, part of the gradually extinct human with not only a mind to think, but also a heart to ponder over. I wait patiently for that time.