Thursday, February 3, 2011

Of Teachers Payroll

With vast bubble up of private enterprises, every company has to make sales to survive. Some companies in their making sales do force a sale where its not needed.

In implementing IT Solutions, the average problem various manual systems to be resolved, is most likely a logical problem. It is required the logical problem in the manual be solved implementing a computerized solution. Otherwise instead of solving the problem, computerising multiplies the problem and faster.

Garbage In - Garbage Out.

That's the first statement you get in introduction to computer. What people have taken it today, I know not. You realise every body expects only

Goodies In - Goodies Out.

But the truth of matter is both statement exist hand in hand.

If your goal is to multiply Goodies and you put in Garbage, Garbage is what you will get. No computer engineer can make this different.

When I hear about the idea of every teacher requiring a bank account, in order to resolve the ghost workers problem, I find that even the bank account cannot resolve this problem completely but rather make it more tricky. In this era where teachers have limited options to officially change professions, how shall it be traced that a teacher who has stopped working is still receiving salaries. For at least in the manual system, the everyone is sure to get a salary at the school they teach, and the headmaster accounts for each. If one teacher has left, the headmaster can not employ another without the knowledge of the division headquarters. So in the end the ghost worker problem resolves. From time to time, the ministry of education sends inspectors, do they not check and confirm the presence of each teacher physically? Does the goes worker still exist today in the twenty first century? I find that it should not.

While with the birth of the ICT industry, the ghost worker problem was one of the popular problems given as an example of the problems to resolve. If it is an issue of payroll, is it not possible to let the teacher have choice of which account to use? Not all of us would have the same preference of banks. Some of us have been greatly disappointed by some banks and would rather have nothing to with them. Some banks would give, conditions that personally we would not like. While it is possible, to receive and transfer the money to the bank of choice, who shall pay for withdraw charges other banks require? Shall the government foot the bill for such bills? Or are they are letting the banks rip where they have not sown by deducting charges from teachers on withdraw?

I find that a simple government certified voucher would do in this case where already almost every teacher has a personal account whether jointly heard or individual, and the payment voucher written in the name of the teacher, would allow the bank to debit the government and pay the teacher their due while the bank settles everything with the government. The verification protocol at best could use Information and Technology tools for efficiency.

I find the integration of such a solution beautiful and more realistic, offering choice, ease and efficiency in the process (other details not included, of course).

By the way, I don't like the idea of a demand to open the accounts or forfeit payment. Teachers are not prisoners who have to be punished to receive their payment nor children who have to be taught with such conditions.

Some banks would rather you check your balance on the ATM What with the rain? And in some you have to come back several times due to network failures. So the money is mine and I had to sweat for it and should I be locked out from accessing my own money?
While there are levels of security, sometimes it is not the strength of a lock but the cleverness of the protocol.