Amidst the tumults of May Day rallies, one cannot fail to realise the importance of work in our daily life. Work is something sacred and offers a means of earning our living. It ennobles us and determines our social status. Work can be categorised into white-collar and blue-collar jobs. Education is now linked with employment opportunities. Certain occupations and professions evidently command more money than others.

The labour market is highly competitive and a school leaver, soft at the edges, finds himself suddenly alienated when he/she steps out of the ivory tower. He/she does not know which door to knock at and it is more frustrating when he/she reckons to his/her dismay that meritocracy hardly exists in certain sectors. Interviews become an eye-wash while ethnic profile and breed count a lot. Job-hunting becomes an ordeal and it is all a matter of luck if he/she happens to get a job that suits his/her temperament, qualifications and expectations.

Job satisfaction can work miracles and it can be achieved only if the environment is conducive and there is team spirit among colleagues. The working site becomes a second home. But at times work can become a nightmare if the boss happens to be a slave-driver and patronising. He has no human heart and he believes he can crack up his whip on his subordinates. Work becomes synonymous to modern slavery. Many thus consider their job as a bitter pill to swallow. Mornings become heavy and painful.

Divide-and-rule policy

Mismanagement can mar the careers of many. The situation becomes sour if the manager adopts the divide-and-rule policy. Spying among colleagues becomes the order of the day. To clamber for promotion on the ladder, some unhesitatingly stab life-long colleagues behind their backs. Clash of personalities, jealousy, character-assassination, back-biting and hate ensue in this unhealthy and asphyxiating atmosphere. Behind the edifice of certain offices, there are untold cases of moral and physical harassment.

So many victims observe the law of silence submissively in spite of humiliations. Only force-ful ones dare to denounce such scandals even though they suffer here after victimisation. But sometimes women are to be blamed for their ways of dressing and provocative attitude.

Work generates stress, frustration, anxiety, tension and bitterness. Commuting in a dense traffic jam daily turns out to be tedious and it is not surprising to hear people longing for the day of their retirement.

The pay-packet constitutes hard-earned money. To carve out a living at the sweat of their forehead is much to be admired. Set as a contrast to them, the sinecures wait for their pay-packet every month without working an ounce for it. Our thoughts go to manual workers who toil under the scorching sun and in stuffy factories earning meagre salaries or those who work while we sleep to feed us, clothe us, care for us and look after our security.

It goes without saying that work keeps us busy. How life would have been dull if everyday became a Sunday! But inversely all work and no play would make life monotonous. Work provides a form of socialisation. It offers us opportunities to befriend people of different walks of life. The day passes quickly without out realising it. Work develops our potential and taps our energy. We contribute to the welfare of society. It gives us dignity.

Life is a perpetual struggle. We are busy fulfilling our needs. But at times we want a change in our life. We switch off from the routine to recharge our batteries. We go for a walk in the forest or camping, or we go for overseas just to forget the monotony of work. Just as the body needs sleep, the mind needs rest and change. Otherwise, it will break down under the strain of work. Relaxation does not mean only sleeping or idling, it also means finding something satisfying and meaningful to do.

For many, after a fruitful professional career, retirement becomes a long awaited moment. How wonderful it feels to pore over morning papers with a cup of tea, to tend orchids, to listen to the chirping of birds or watch a DVD with Karajan conducting Vivaldi?s Four Seasons, to be far from the madding crowd, to banish stress and forget the notion of time. ?All the world is a stage?, so writes Shakespeare.

Philip LI CHING HUM