Servicing.....

Today happened to be a lucky day for my Activa. She was lucky to get a servicing done by a nearby mechanic. Not a big deal, as it is customary to most 2-wheelers. But what caught my attention was the final bill. It included a whooping Rs. 350 as uncompromised labour charge i.e. the cash that the mechanic ‘charged’ for his pains of servicing the scooterette. I made a mini survey to make a small conclusion/thesis.

The mechanic takes about 45 mins for the servicing. Cleaning up the internal parts, tightening the screws are just a few of those. Similar to a ‘refresh’ command, servicing basically rejuvenates one’s Moped. Servicing doesn’t require a skilled worker, not does it need any particular specification/qualifications from the person who is going to service your bike. Still we call him a mechanic. Taking out the charges of water and the usage of certain mechanical instruments, the worker pockets Rs. 275 for his contribution (including conversation with the customer) of 45 mins.

I learnt from the worker that he attends to around 5 bikes per day for servicing and other 3-4 for minor damage. The latter fetching him Rs.100-200 depending on the part damaged and the labour involved to change it.
So making a small calculation, the worker earns an average of Rs. 1500 per day. Of course there are days where the customers are more/less. This isn’t as astonishing as it sounds as he pays ‘25% as royalty’. Yet, he earns an approximate Rs. 1k per day, or Rs. 3.5 lacs per annum.

This is what an average engineer gets for as his first job. The difference is that the latter puts in 22 years of life in receiving knowledge which he is seldom gonna use. Has the world moved on or are we lagging behind? Perhaps time will decide.

SS: This article/facts/incident may not be applicable to all, please don’t generalize. Approximations used.