Minister wants weekend to start on Saturday and end on Tuesday

THE ROGUE

A proposal by one of the ministers in government to extend the weekend from Saturday to Tuesday has generated debate and elicited excitement among some Ugandans.

If the proposal gets the nod, it means Ugandans will work for only three days a week and rest for four.

The Rogue understands that the senior minister intends to table the proposal in a cabinet meeting soon.

The minister, whose name will shall keep anonymous, was overheard telling a colleague during Martyrs Day celebrations at Namugongo on Monday June 3, that Uganda should adopt this weekend system.

"People need adequate rest because it has been discovered that many people are dying from stress related illnesses," the male minister said.

He pointed out that in the past week, Ugandans have rested from Saturday to Tuesday, something that has given their bodies the much needed rest.

Since Saturday June 1, Ugandans have been resting.  Sunday was a continuation of the weekend while Monday was Martyrs Day.

Today, Tuesday (today) is Eid-el-Fitr, another rest day to commemorate the end of Ramadan.

He said that working five days a week does not guarantee that a country's economic growth rate will double.

He gave the example of Uganda which he said has averaged 4.5% economic growth rate for the last three years despite people working for five days a week.

He gave an example of Netherlands which has the shortest working week of 29 hours but whose economy is booming.

"In Netherlands, people typically work for one day and five hours a week yet the country's GDP is $826 billion. That is 25 times bigger than Uganda's GDP," he said.

The minister said that if Ugandans rest more then they will generate enough energy to work harder in the remaining three days of the week.

Resting more, the minister said, will save Uganda at least Shs 200 billion a year, money that is spent on treating stress related ailments.

He said people will also save on the daily transport to and from work while the dangers like motor accidents associated with too much movement will be minimised.

On the downside, the minister acknowledged, the longer weekend could lead to an explosion in the population as some people will take this was an invitation to make more babies.

The minister said for business people and those in the private sector, they can choose to work on all the days of the week like some have been doing and that the longer weekend will apply to largely government workers.

The minister however proposed a number of other measures that will increase productivity on if we are to adopt a longer weekend.

First, he said, that on the three working days, Ugandans shall be expected to start work at 6.00 AM in the morning and end at 10.00PM. 

Secondly, there will be no annual leave for employees or day offs during the week.

Thirdly all functions (weddings, burials and parties) shall be done over the long weekend not any of the working days.

Some Ugandans have supported the proposal while others say it will encourage laziness.

One of those who support the proposal said she had suffered from stress which had led her to be hospitalised four times in one year.

"Walayi we need this long rest because we have been suffering. The two days are not enough for some of us," a one Nanziri said on Facebook.

However, Kasawuli, a businessman, said a longer weekend will be disastrous to the country's economy. He said it will lead to low productivity and low industrial output.

The last we heard was that the minister was fine-tuning his proposal and arguments ahead of the cabinet meeting. He is confident that President Museveni will endorse it.

 

The Rogue is a satirical column that runs once a week on The Nile Post.

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