Four-day work week: Can Govt. reap what it sows?

This week, Sri Lanka joined a growing list of countries experimenting with the four-day workweek, but for very different reasons. On Tuesday, the Cabinet of Ministers granted approval for the proposal to declare a four-day workweek for public sector employees, except for workers in essential services. Accordingly, Friday was declared a holiday for public sector employees, except for essential workers, for a period of three months. Public sector employees in the fields of health, water, power and energy supply, education, security and other essential services are however exempt from this new regulation. 

Worldwide, proposals to implement a four-day work week are gaining traction. The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way the world views employment, and many contemporary economies are now acknowledging that employees are overworked. This week, in the world’s largest experiment with the new working pattern, more than 3,300 staff at 70 United Kingdom companies will begin working a four-day week with no pay cut. 

This week, Sri Lanka too joined a growing list of countries experimenting with the four-day workweek, but for very different reasons

Minister of Public Administration Dinesh Gunawardena stated that the proposal was tabled in view of the current fuel crisis. However, the Department of Government Information in its announcement of Cabinet Decisions said that it seemed appropriate to grant government officials leave for one working day of the week and provide them with necessary facilities to engage in agricultural activities in their backyards or elsewhere as a solution to the food shortage that is expected to occur in the future. 

The decision comes following a warning by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe of a food shortage that is expected to surface towards the latter part of this year. Wickremesinghe warned of an acute food shortage by August, stating that Sri Lanka requires USD 600 million to import fertiliser required for the next cultivation season. 
Premier Wickremesinghe also briefed representatives of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on possible mitigation efforts and plans to overcome the production gap. 

How would public sector employees who have been given Friday leave to participate in home gardening truly accomplish home gardening with no adequate understanding, since even farmers have not received sufficient fertilizer training?

Following President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s controversial decision to ban agrochemical imports to Sri Lanka, agricultural experts have long warned of a possible shortage of staples including rice and vegetables, due to lower yields. 

The Daily Mirror spoke to Minister  Dinesh Gunawardena to inquire about the facilities that would be granted to public sector employees in this regard. “Divisional secretaries will supervise them together with the ministry as to how these workers can engage in home gardening,” Minister Gunawardena said. 

“There is also the opportunity for public sector officials to use this time to learn foreign languages and information technology subjects,” the Minister said, adding that these proposals were still at the discussion level. “However, the expectation is to get them engaged in home gardening activities in their own neighbourhood.” 

Asked if there are concerns that this move would affect productivity in the state services, Minister Gunawardena said he doesn’t expect it to be an issue. 

“Basically this is to cushion the cost of transport and other costs borne during the commute to work during this time. Secondly, state workers have been trained during the pandemic lockdown periods to work from home. 
Minister Gunawardena said the four-day work week will be implemented for an interim period of three months. “If there is a need, this time can be increased through Cabinet approval,” he said. 

Even farmers don’t know how to use fertilisers on crops safely. How will more than 1.5 state workers do it?
How would public sector employees who have been given Friday leave to participate in home gardening truly accomplish home gardening with no adequate understanding, since even farmers have not received sufficient fertiliser training? If done without sufficient awareness by a significant number of state employees in the nation — approximately more than 1.5 million, will it generate another set of long-term health concerns? 

Heavy metals such as Arsenic (AS), Mercury (Hg), lead (Pb), and Cadmium (Cd) have been identified in fruits and vegetables, according to a review research conducted in 2018 by the Hector Kobbekaduwa Agrarian Research and Training Institute. The study also revealed that the lack of a properly scrutinised methodology to monitor pesticide malpractices and misuse by the farming community, as well as the safe and efficient use of overdose fertiliser and pesticides, poses an imminent threat to the quality of fruits and vegetables produced in the country. 

A recently released audit by the National Audit Office on the regulation of the prevention and control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in Sri Lanka also indicated that a lack of monitoring in the production of vegetables and fruits has contributed to the high incidence of NCDs in Sri Lanka. 

Despite the fact that farmers are aware that pesticide use has a negative impact on human health and the environment, pesticides are used at the farmers’ discretion on the instructions provided by the pesticides market, without receiving the appropriate technical instructions regarding pesticide use. 

Farmers are forced to take advice from sales shops on how to use pesticides due to a lack of laboratory facilities at the regional level for sample tests to be carried out in respect of diseases caused to agricultural crops because the required mechanism is insufficient for giving advice to peasants about what kinds of approved pesticides and agrochemicals to be used, having obtained test reports within a shorter period to minimise crop damages. 
“Api Wawamu-Rata Nagamu”

The annual allocation for the Agriculture Ministry’s Development programmes in 2011 amounted to Rs.1,858.5 million, under the special agriculture development drive “Api Wawamu-Rata Nagamu”. 

Several years ago, former Agriculture Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena also had revealed in Parliament that Rs. 34.2 million have been used only for propaganda and publicity campaigns of the ‘Api Wawamu – Rata Nagamu’ programme from the initial year 2008 to 2011. Abeywardena stated this in reply to a question raised in Parliament. He further released the following figures as expenditure for publicity campaigns for the programme per annum; 
2008 Rs. 8 million 
2009 Rs. 8.5 million 
2010 Rs. 7.7 million 
2011 Rs. 10 million 

Evidently, efforts to popularise small-scale gardening projects across the country are not new. At the cost of millions to the country, the government has repeatedly played with a pipe dream of achieving self-sufficiency in food. 

If the ‘Api Wawamu – Rata Nagamu’ programme implemented at a whopping publicity expenditure of 34.2 million just within four years was in fact a success, would Sri Lanka be grappling with massive import bills on foods or threatened by the lack of fertiliser for farmers? The question remains.