Effects Of Macroenvironment On Jobs In India Is Costing Lives

While many around the country were rightly upset and angry over the death of a 26-year-old chartered accountant who passed away complaining of exhaustion and overwork at her firm Pune-based SR Batliboi, a member firm of EY Global, there was another story that caught my eye. A 19-year-old delivery executive working for a food delivery company in Chennai died by suicide in his residence on Tuesday.

The Indian Express said the death was due to consequences he faced following an altercation with a customer over a delayed grocery delivery because of difficulty in locating the house. The delivery person was a BCom student balancing his studies and part-time work. Maybe he would have wanted to study on and become a chartered accountant like the Pune girl as many BCom students aspire to. The story turns sadder as you read on.

Because the customer was so upset or matters went so out of hand, she not only berated him for being late but also then filed a complaint with the delivery platform. The police told The Indian Express that the delivery platform took action against the rider. There is much commentary right now on the nature of work or overwork. Be that as it may, the challenges faced by knowledge workers often get more attention than those faced by delivery executives.

Remember, it is not just about being on time for these youngsters but also battling extreme weather conditions from record temperatures to incessant rainfall. Rarely do they even get an additional tip.

A study by Bank of Baroda Research last month said the employment scene in India’s corporate sector as represented by a sample of 1,196 companies was not too encouraging.

Based on data reported in balance sheets, they said job growth for the sample was just 1.5% in FY24 compared with 5.7% in FY23. The study found that the top five companies with the highest headcount employed less people last year than they did the year before. So employment levels fell for these largest companies over the last two years.

Likely, the delivery executive doesn’t figure in these statistics because these only cover the organised sector whereas the Pune girl quite likely did. And yet their challenges were somewhat similar. For both the Pune and Chennai youngsters, the stress of holding onto the job and working hard would have surely strained their physical and mental faculties. They are obviously not alone.

Jobs are fragile in India, except for a few talented and perhaps lucky youngsters. No wonder millions line up for thousands of government jobs because they provide a sense of security for themselves and their families.

It is also evident that even for those within jobs, particularly in the private sector, there has to be a better and conscious understanding of workplace pressure and what it can do. There will surely be much discussion of working conditions in consulting firms but will there be discussions about the same for workers in the gig economy? Or construction workers, who form the largest chunk of employees?

The cumulative effect of the macro environment, which is the economy, the microenvironment and working conditions, has never been so profound. As we rightly debate what led to the tragedy in Pune, we should equally think about the millions who toil away in extreme weather conditions, including those who almost kill themselves. Just so we can eat our pizza when it's hot.