Early Times Repot
Jammu, Sept 25: On the call of all Central Trade Unions to intensify the struggle against the 'adamant attitude' of the government in neglecting their genuine demands, workers from all over state with different Central Trade Unions participated in a protest rally here on Wednesday.
This is in continuation of joint struggle on the 10 point charter of demands on which countrywide 48 hours general strike was observed on 20 and February 20 and 21, 2013.
Ten point charter of demands-curb price rise and universalization of public distribution system, job protection, enforcement of labour laws, social security for un-organized workers, stop disinvestment in PSUs, minimum wages not less than 10000, pension for all, equal wages and benefits to the contract workers, ensuring the right to organization and collective bargaining, removal of ceiling of bonus, ESI, gratuity, compulsory registration of trade unions within a period of 45 days and ratification of ILO convention No 87 and 98.
The rally passed through Dogra Chowk, Jewel Chowk, Gumat Bazaar, Jewel Chowk, City Chowk, Raghunath Bazar and culminated at Indira Chowk.
President INTUC J&K Shiv Kumar Sharma and General Secretary Thakur Raghubir Singh Chib while addressing the gathering demanded for strict enforcement of labour laws and punitive measures for violation of labour laws.
They said that in majority of workplaces, minimum wages are not paid, basic social security benefits are denied. "In fact 90 percent of the disputes and conflicts going on in different workplace in the country relate just non-implementation of the existing labour laws," they said and demanded that there should be pension for all.
"The government is curtailing whatever meagre social security benefits available to the workers.
The existing pensionary benefits for the government employees are being sought to dismantled and replaced by so called new pension system which make the defined pension benefit for the retired government employees totally uncertain and market depending," they added.
General Secretary of State Committee of CITU Om Parkash while addressing the rally said that CITU has taken a pioneering role in opposing the neo-liberal policies from their inception even when some section of trade unions movement nurtured illusions about these policies and believed these benefiting the workers and eliminating poverty through their trickledown effect.
He said that government should curb the price rise and universalization of public distribution system and complete ban on speculation and future trading in commodity market which alone can contain the rising prices, there cannot be a third way for the same.
Com Pawan Gupta and Ramesh Chand, the senior leaders of Northern Zones Insurance Employees Association demanded complete stoppage of disinvestment of shares in profit making State and Central PSUs.
Others who spoke on this occasion included Sunita Bhagat, General Secretary, Asha workers Union, Kailash Chander, General Secretary, Railway Loading and Unloading Workers Union, Soukat Choudhary, President, National Highway Workers Union. |
