Government Workers

When last have you had to go to a government office? Avoid it like the plague!

Let me however thank the tax department for introducing the efficient on-line payment service. What a pity they can't offer that service for everything. Let me say up front though, I never have to worry when I have to go to the tax office at Constant Spring for no matter how long the lines are, you get through quickly, despite the run down printers that they use. And the staff there tends to be very pleasant.

So why does the tax department send out the lazy, unpleasant and lethargic cashiers to the other agencies?

Before today my only experience was at the Swallowfield examination depot where the examiners are out early, but guess what? The cashier seemed accustomed to coming when she feels like. Anyway that was my experience.......... having to wait for the cashier to show up long after the her opening time. That's when I learnt that these cashiers work for the ministry of finance and are not under the supervision of the management at Swallowfield.

Well I thought that was bad but that's because I never had never been to the Survey department before. Today, just the day when I was in a hurry, ( but had still made the usual time allowance for slow service since its a government department)the cashier could not be found at 9.30 am. After an impatient wait, I started to ask around for her. No luck. When I asked if there was no supervisor around, that is when I learnt that she too worked for the Ministry of Finance not the agency where she was operating!

Fortunately I encountered a helpful employee at the Survey office who told me I could go next door and pay at the Titles office. Problem is, there was no security guard at the back gate so I would have to circle around to get next door. So off I went. But guess what, the young man over there could not even find $350 change (at 9.45am) so I would have to got back to the Survey office! (I immediately assumed he too works with the Ministry of Finance!)

I guess he saw that I was about to burst a blood vessel so he called over there and was told the cashier had returned. So back to the Survey office to finalize a transaction that should have taken me five minutes, in over half hour, thanks to the quality of cashiers and the level of preparedness of the civil servants that the tax department farms out to other agencies.

I wonder if masseurs (not the sex workers) shouldn't be looking at setting up spas next door to government offices for you surely need to go through a de-stressing session after dealing with most of them.....and they have the nerve to ask for pay increases!

If ever anyone needed convincing that the policy of giving pay increase across the board and not a on merit basis is counter productive, they should try getting things done at most government departments .