Please do not get offended if you are a government employee--

hi kalav I am an American from California and here we have the Department of motor vehicles. I do not drive but every few years I need to renew my DMV senior citizens I.de. card. okay so that should only take a few minutes ri ght? uh uhnt, Our activity director Yara dr ove the six of us who needed new Senior citizens ID cards to the nearest DMV ofice. wegive the first person our old cards then wait to be called up. ten minutes, twenty minutes, no no, thirty minutes,no , ah fifty minutes I am to go to window ten. okay so I push my waler around a maze of window to window 10, there a bored woman slowly unwinds from her seat,takes your old card, and looks at it and looks at it, and then looks at it. okay so now she nmoves almost briskly to print o ut a form for you,then hands it to you along with the old used up card and tells me to go to window 6. At window 6 an equally bored lady slowly takes your photoless card and gives you a slip of paper with maybe an inch of writing space and asks you to fill in you whole name. you are given a ginormous pen .she murmurs just do the best you can all has to fit in the space.so I cram amywhole name in this space then told to wait. half an hour later you are called to have your p hotograph taken.oh no the photographer says, take off your glasses. so I handed them to the languid lady.They take my photo and leave me blinking trying to get the flash out of my eyes.its now fifteen minutes to 12 noon. we started at nine and were late to lunch but they had saved plates for us knowing when you go to the DMV it will take a long long time. one change. they have seats now for us people who have handicaps and cannot stand for many long minutes. so I am so glad I don't have to renew my ID for California for 5 years. whoopee. no DMV for a long time.

Here is a story about Governament run establishments. Once a restaurent was opend by a Governament. It was staffed by the cronies of the politicians, naturally. Since the workers were to be protected, there was a union. Since it was public property everybody pilfered everything. Since workers had to eat, it was open at all times except the breakfast time, the lunch time, the snacks time and the dinner time. It was the union rule. If someone was to order anything, they had to submit an application in triplicate, signed by a notary and endorsed by a magistrate. Once an order was taken a purchase commitee would convene a meeting to make a budget for the item. A recommendation to the finance ministry would then be sent with copies to the governer, to be forwarded to the president. Once the finance was sanctioned, a tender from three parties would be called to buy the material for the order. Once the approved party got the tender, the vigilance commitee would raise objections and it would be re-tendered. Finally the tender would result in purchase. The material, on inspection would be found of bad quality. Again a tender would be raised. To keep the story short, I ordered a cup of tea in 1965 and am still waiting for it. That is how governament establishments work. Please learn to live without them.

Hi Kala! I can understand your agony and that is why Government outlets do not make much profit because they employees feel that their job is secured and they will not be fired. If you find them beyond toleration point, you can always ask for complaint book and can register a complaint. A simple complaint will make them work siftly.

I think government employees in most cultures are less than wonderful when it comes to dealing with the public, although there are exceptions. I do know, however, that from my own experience, people from certain areas are more friendly in providing service as a group than those from other areas. This is true even within my own country, where people from the South and Midwest tend to be more outgoing and helpful and smile more than people from the coasts and/or large metropolitan areas. For 15 years I commuted by car a distance of about 600 miles, which took about 11 hours to drive and on one end the people were brusque and impersonal and on the other end they were gracious, so I had to brace myself before "landing" so to speak. It was odd. Now, finally, I have for the most part settled in an friendly area, although I do go back once or twice a year to the "colder" climate.

it is sad to hear things like these and that about government, the offices and the employees. but something that we can only do is to follow their rules as they are only following the rules. and it is too sad that even those clean employees like me, are also being treated the same by the people. if not only for the security of tenure that government employees like me enjoys, i will surely move out of this office if i have somewhere else to go.

I too once went to a government institute and the treatment that I got there was extremely pathetic that now I refrain from visiting any government owned places. Being in govt sector actually gives them freedom that even if they don't do their work fine they still get paid for it well. So with this kind of job security most of them turn irresponsible.

Well, part of the problem depending on what you are wanting, etc. could be what they have to do to make that happen. I know here in the US for example sometimes there could be a lot of Red Tape that they need to clear before things can get done, like check backgrounds, make some calls, etc. to where it sometimes seems like even the smallest little gesture takes forever. Personally it would be nice if it was easier, but then would you feel as safe?

In some places it certainly seems that employees want their checks but would prefer not to be bothered to work for it. It does get to be very old to have to keep trying to get action from anything that a government agency is involved in.

Hi , it was the same speed 35 years ago,, I thought they have improved now,Have they become slower now?

thanks didi... i am also a government employee but not to this sector. Well, like you i have also faced the same and not only banking but in others too. Without bribing, a file does not move and this is a bitter truth of our country. take care.

Hiya kalav, How are you then? I have Hatley´s problem with ID cards as I now have to have an extra Surname added on and they are making things very difficult and problematic for me as well. One I spoke to stood up to his full height smirking away and being pompous as well. I thought to myself I can see that they have not changed very much at all since the last time I came here. That is why I dislike going there. They have changed Buildings but not changed their ways at all they are still as arrogant as they ever were. Did I get anywhere the last time I went there? Alas I have to say no. For now I am making do with my British Passport as that is valid but I had a heck of a game to get that one too all that has changed if you live in a foreign Country like I do. Seems that they are all tied with the same brush (seems like they are all the same everywhere all over the World). They might be surrounded by Computers and all those Gadgets but they have not had a Course in how to treat the Public as a whole. I am referring to the ones here of course maybe they are more polite elsewhere. You can be very polite and very patient and it will not get you anywhere if you have all the work done through one of their Agencies they are also the same but you have to pay three times more and they do not do what is required either. Almost given up but not quite (grin).