Work

An 18 year old boy looks after the guest house where I am temporarily staying. He works for 8 hours every day from Monday to Sunday. His parents own a small shop in the market district and after work every day he goes to sit in the shop. He is in his last year of school so while sitting in the shop he studies and after the shop closes he finishes any study that he has to do. I saw him working last Sunday and was surprised, I asked him when he takes time off and he old me that he doesn’t. He told me that days-off breed laziness.

I had that day off and I spent most of it wandering aimlessly.

My preceptor starts work at about 9 30 and works till 2 he then starts again at 5 30 and goes till about 9. He has cut down his work hours because he thinks it is important to spend some time with his family.

The junior doctors that I work with start work at about 8 and do all their pre round work before the consultants like my preceptor arrive at 9 30. They take about an hour for lunch and then stick around to do post round work after the consultants leave at 9 pm. When I asked my friend what he does on his days off he says that he doesn’t take any. He saves them up and then goes home for 4 or five days every couple of months.

I have been working the same hours of them and already after a week am feeling burned out. I come from a country where the average income is around $35 000 a year. Most people in India earn less that $2 per day.

Why?