Sweeping out work worries

When work gets stressful, I like to reach for a broom.

No, not a management broom, the type which executives use to sweep out unwanted staff...but an ordinary household broom which we use to remove dirt.

The Thai-owned company which employs me is embarking on a restructuring and modernising phase. We have been through several of these in my time, but none seem as potentially wide-ranging as this one, which is brought about partly by the recession, and partly by the internet age, which is changing the way many companies do business.

A handful of Thai staff has been shown the door. One staff member dissolved in tears when the company told him he was no longer wanted. Like one or two other names on the list, he drew a wage every fortnight but hadn’t been seen in the office in years.

My company has an internationalist perspective, in that it employs foreigners and values what we do. It has also asked us to contribute to the debate over the company’s direction, which is welcome.

In my industry, it is probably one of the more far-sighted companies in Bangkok, if not the region.

Some of my foreigner colleagues have worked elsewhere in Asia. They say they were treated little better than poor migrant workers.

That said, we do have our problems. One is a lack of staff morale, which is inevitable in times of change. Worse, they axed our mid-year and end-year bonus, which upset my boyfriend as much as it did me.

‘Why don’t they just fold the company altogether, if they can’t afford to pay their staff a miserable two weeks’ extra?’ Maiyuu said bitterly.

In times like these, as I say, I like to clean, starting with the floors. I can work out my frustration on them.

I swept the floor of the main room this morning, and tackled the bathroom. Later today, I am likely to get the bedroom itch.

‘It’s another form of exercise,’ I tell the boyfriend, who looks baffled when I tell him that I want to sweep. It also helps keep my work worries at bay.

’Why bring your work problems home...you’ve finished for the day,’ says Maiyuu.

True, I have. But to be good at my job, I have to think about work most of the time. It is always with me, even when it isn’t.

My foreigner friends are the same; it’s just the way we are. Do Thais think about work even when they are not at the office?

I have never asked, but I bet some do. It occupies a big chunk of our lives after all.