BSNL drops plans to define daily output-ET 12 10 10

KOLKATA: State-owned BSNL has dismissed a proposal mooted by sections of its management to define daily output targets of the 2.5 lakh-plus Group C&D employees, who constitute nearly 85% of its workforce, fearing resistance from its unions. The telco had declared a loss of `2,611 crore in 2009-10, its first ever, and the proposal was aimed at improving employee productivity.

The plan included fixing the number of new connections — landline, mobile, WLL or broadband — that any Group C&D employee would be expected to sell a day/week and the number of customer grievances to be redressed each day.

“The proposal was debated in last week’s BSNL circle heads conference to push for greater accountability among the biggest chunk of BSNL staff, but it was eventually rejected largely since BSNL’s Group C&D employees largely comprise union protected cadre,” a senior BSNL executive told ET.

At present, there are no defined work output norms or specific business targets for BSNL’s Group C&D employees who include linemen, telecom mechanics, telephone operators, clerks, peons and technical assistants. This vast employee pool is responsible for diverse core functions right from facilitating new connections, redressing every form of customer complaint, trouble shooting at the exchange level to managing collection of phone bills. But, in absence of work output rules, there is little scope for monitoring performance.

“In absence of any defined work norms, there is very little accountability from the biggest chunk BSNL’s employee pool. Under such circumstances, it would be impossible for any circle to maximise performance, be it fast-track customer redressal or meeting business expansion targets,” a BSNL CGM who had attended the meet said. The responsibility for customer complaint redressal and meeting business expansion targets lies largely with the 26-odd territorial CGMs of BSNL.

Recently, the government had urged PM’s telecom advisor Sam Pitroda to revive the dwindling fortunes of BSNL. The Pitroda panel, which included veteran banker Deepak Parekh and the telecom secretary , had among other things recommended a strategic stake sale and a reduction in BSNL’s three-lakh staff by a third. But with the trade unions vehemently opposing the job cuts and share sale, Pitroda panel’s views appear to have come a cropper.