Peaceful government jobs in India

Historically, Indians have always preferred government jobs, especially people from certain states, such as Rajasthan, UP, Bihar, MP, etc. This craze seems to be spreading to other parts of the country too, especially for Class A government jobs, such as UPSC jobs.

People aim for government jobs for various reasons, one of them being the peace of mind and stress-free lifestyle. Though career growth in many government jobs may not be fast enough to satisfy an ambitious person, but for some of us a balanced lifestyle is more precious.

In most of the government jobs you will enjoy the life just as you used to do in college. Work-life balance is excellent in most of these jobs (though there are exceptions!), and it allows you to give time to your family and yourself.

Better work-life balance = Less Stress = Better Mental Health = Better Life

In this article, we will have a look at some of the government jobs that are super chill. We will also list down some of the government jobs wherein you will find a ton of workload. It will allow you to make an informed decision. As far as possible, we have only included the jobs wherein you get a good salary and a decent social status.

Table of Contents

• Why are Government jobs more peaceful?
• Least workload government jobs in India
• Government jobs having High workload

Why are Government jobs more peaceful?

Apart from career stability, social status, and other perks, one of the main reasons why people aim government jobs is the peace of mind most of these jobs offer.

It basically means two things:

• Job Security – Unlike many private sector jobs, you get much better job security in government jobs. Once you complete the probation period, the process of removing a permanent government or public sector unit (PSU) employee is a long process. Contrast this with private sector, wherein you may get a pink slip out of a sudden, sometimes even without any prior warning.
• Less Workload – In many government offices you will find that the workload is relatively lesser than that in private sector. Though in some government jobs there’s immense workload and pressure – just have a look at the lifestyle of a police officer, a public sector bank employee, even some PSU workers, etc. But even if workload is higher in these government jobs, you will not be impacted by it mentally in the same manner as in a private job.

However, there are some negative facets to government jobs too.

• Office politics and Unions – As it’s difficult to remove people from government jobs, many employees make formal and informal groups and unions in such offices. So, you may expect to face some office politics in some of the government jobs. If you fall on the wrong side of politics, and see people ganging up against you, that will not be too healthy for your peace of mind. There are also caste-based groups and caste-based promotions that add another layer of friction among employees in a government office.
• Corruption – If you are an honest person, but the prevailing system of your office or organization expects you to take bribe and pass-on a cut to higher officials, then you will have to face some tough times.
• Transfers – Unlike most private jobs, in majority of government jobs you will face transfers on a regular or irregular basis. It will not only disrupt your routine, but also of your family, e.g. your kids’ studies.
• Slow Promotions – Promotions are rather slow in most of the government jobs. If you are an ambitious person, this might affect your happiness quotient.

So, peace of mind is not a simple uniform parameter. Rather, it has multitude of dimensions. You will have to introspect regarding what kind of peace of mind you are looking for, and choose a job accordingly.

Note

If you are too ambitious, you may start your own business even while working in a government office, maybe in the name of some family member. In today’s world, anything is possible. It will allow you the best of both worlds – peace of mind provided by a government job, and fast growth provided by your own venture.

Least workload government jobs in India

Here are some of the government jobs wherein you will find a healthy work-life balance.

• Professors and Teachers: Government professors and teachers perhaps enjoy the best work-life balance. It’s especially true for professors teaching in leading universities of India. They have to take a handful of classes each week, live in a creative and intellectual ambience, can focus on their research and writing books, etc. I know it first hand, as one of my uncles was a professor in IIT-BHU, Varanasi (in Mechanical Department). I lived with him for two months in 2003 for my summer project in IIT-BHU. He used to take only around one or two lectures per day (this is the average workload in government colleges – 1 to 2 hours per day!). But you will probably need a PhD for this purpose.
• Some UPSC jobs are also less stressful, e.g. Indian Revenue Service (IRS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) - at least as compared to IAS and IPS.
• LIC AAO: AAO and AO jobs in LIC and non-life insurance companies are a bit less stressful (at least as compared to Bank POs). Also, LIC AAO is a desk job, unlike LIC ADO (which is a marketing job with targets and hence a bit more stressful). You can also give some exams and become Actuaries in insurance companies – this job is considered even better than IRS and is a typical 9 to 5 job. LIC has 6 working days in a week, while most non-life insurance agencies (e.g. ECGC, UIIC, etc.) have 5 working days a week.
• Some SSC jobs such as Auditor, ASO in AFHQ, etc. ASO in AFHQ has a decent workload and there are 5 working days in a week. He will always work in some Defence Headquarter in Delhi (so no transfers to another city). While ASO in CSS cannot skip office and cannot study in office, ASO in AFHQ can do both to a certain extent. ASO in CSS has comparatively more workload than ASO in AFHQ. Now, Auditors also have a low workload, but after getting promoted to AAO their workload increases. However, if you skip a promotion and become Senior Auditor, your workload will remain decent all throughout your career. ASO in AFHQ is better than Auditor job when it comes to salary and promotions. However, as is the case with most defence jobs, some of your freedom is curtailed in defence departments, e.g. you will not be allowed to take your phone inside the office, etc.

Note

Workload and peace of mind in government jobs may also vary from one city/region to another, and even from one office to another in the same city. We are just denoting a general trend in this article. If you get a bad boss or wrong kind of colleagues, then even the best job may start looking like the worst.

Government jobs having High workload

There are some government jobs that will put you under as much work pressure as many private jobs. Let’s have a look at some of them.

• Bank Jobs: Bank jobs are one of the most stressful jobs in our country, with very limited holidays. It’s especially true for POs (clerks can leave sooner and the responsibility of verification of their work lies on POs). Plus, the constant stress of doing your work along with dealing with customers. I know this first-hand as I have worked in Bank of Baroda as PO for some time (in Lucknow and Kanpur).
• Security Related Jobs: Security related jobs, be it state police, or paramilitary or military, require a lot of discipline and dedication on your part. Though here the workload is not much in conventional sense, but you will be kept busy in some thing or another. Also, there’s a lot of political influence, especially in state police. Influence of Politicians Or Office Politics = Lack of Peace.
• Some SSC jobs such as Income Tax Inspector, Excise Inspector, etc.

Least Workload Private Jobs

In case of private jobs, a lot depends on the culture and management of the company you join in. You will find companies having a variety of cultures even within the same sector.

For example, when I became a software engineer in 2006, I joined an American MNC in Noida. It was super chill. We used to play computer games even in office. But some of my bacthmates got some serious projects that required them to really work hard. In fact, in private jobs you need to work hard and learn new skills for 3-4 years even after joining a new job. While in most government jobs, you can live a relaxed life just after training.

But there are some private jobs wherein you have to work hard almost life-long, e.g. investment banking, share-market/trading related jobs, marketing jobs, etc.

Let’s list down a few of the private jobs here that are (in general) less stressful than other private jobs:

• Software Engineering: You will get a good salary (especially if you get an onsite posting), and/or if you are successful in becoming an expert in some field, you can earn even more with minimal efforts. It’s true for all knowledge-based private jobs. If you have knowledge/skill, you will earn a lot without working very hard. (Your past hard work will give you dividends even in future)

• Teaching: Even some private teaching jobs are very good. For example, some coaching institutes offer lakhs and crores of rupees to their leading faculty. If you have command on some subject, you will earn a lot, without having to work very hard. Yes you may have to take a few classes, but then you will only be teaching almost the same stuff to them again and again. (However, small schools and coaching institutes pay very less). My tip will be to join a coaching sector where regular exams are held and entrance fee of coaching is high, e.g. UPSC, IIT-JEE, NEET, GATE, etc. Here you will get the most salary – even starting salary is most often over a lakh per month. MBA coachings pay in medium range, say 50k to a lakh per month. While, coachings for exams such as SSC, Bank, and other one day exams pay very less (sometimes only Rs. 500 per hour), so you will have to take many classes here to make a decent amount of money.

Winding Up

Though we have listed the jobs that are considered most peaceful in terms of workload, peace of mind is dependent on many other factors too, such as the amount of money you are earning, your relations with your superiors and your colleagues, etc.

Moreover, in some branches or departments of these so-called “less workload” jobs, you may still find hectic work. So, exceptions will always be there. Keep that in mind and make a career choice as per your ambitions in life.

Also, whether you find your job stressful or easy also depends on how good you are in the work you are doing and whether you like the infrastructure and culture of your organization. For example, some may find armed forces jobs very stressful, while others may enjoy them a lot.

Though India is a young country and has got independence after centuries of subjugation, and so it requires hard-working youngsters to realize the demographic dividend we all talk about. However, it’s also a democratic, free country, and every citizen has the right to lead his/her life the way he/she wants.

Peace of mind does not always equate to laziness. If it allows you to contribute to your community and the society in other innovative and creative ways, definitely go for it.

Note

There may be a lot of private jobs too that are super-relaxed. Luckily, I worked as a software engineer in an American MNC in Noida for 3 years and in an educational institute in Delhi for 8 years, and both of these jobs were super-chilled. Though there were a few days or weeks of workload and tough deadlines, it was all pretty easily manageable.

However, in private jobs you cannot sit idle even if your manager is not giving you much work. In private sector, employees must keep increasing their knowledge and skill-level, otherwise they will become redundant with time. You never know when you can get fired, even with no mistake of yours, e.g. what if your company suffers losses, or there’s a financial slowdown, etc. You may have to give some interviews to get another job and explain them what all you did in your previous job, the skills you learnt and how can you be useful to them. Interviews of experienced employees are a lot different than that of college freshers.

In private jobs, it is not considered a good thing that you are not being given enough work by your manager – either he does not believe on your skills enough, or maybe he’s ignoring you and robbing you from your chance of learning new skills through hands-on training in live production environment.