Step forward

Sir — The Japanese government has urged all employers in the country to institute a four-day work week, instead of the traditional five-day one. This is aimed at helping employees maintain work-life balance, and to encourage them to learn new skills. All nations must take such steps. After all, employees must pick up new skills to stay competitive in the job market that has been shaken up by the pandemic.

Soudip Karmakar,
Calcutta

At long last

Sir — The sentencing of the former Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, to 22.5 years in prison for George Floyd’s murder has brought the tragic case to a fair end. In the 13 months since Floyd’s death, the United States of America has been forced to confront the fact that racial injustice remains deeply rooted in the American experience.

Following the incident, several cities in the US have made progress in making policing less dangerous and more people-friendly. The nation has even embraced a new federal holiday that acknowledges the US’s devastating history of slavery and racial discrimination. Yet, the fact remains that the police has killed more than 1,000 people across the US since last year. Research also confirms that nearly half of those killed were people of colour. Floyd’s case may have ended with a just verdict but the crucial work of ensuring racial justice across the US is far from over.

Ranganathan Sivakumar,
Chennai

Sir — Sentencing Derek Chauvin to 22 and a half years’ imprisonment will not bring George Floyd back to his family. It will also not do much to eliminate the racial hatred that drives many Americans. But such hatred is not limited to the US.

Categorizing people on the basis of skin colour is itself ridiculous. Why use terms such as ‘black’, ‘brown’ and ‘white’ to describe people when this could make them feel like it is the colour of skin that matters more than their identity as a human being? People of African origin have already suffered much. Although most official institutions in the US do not discriminate on the basis of skin colour, much more needs to be done to end racial injustice. People in positions of power, such as politicians, who spread hatred on the basis of caste, colour and creed must be reined in globally.

Brij B. Goyal,
Ludhiana