Category Archives: BSNLCCWF – Casual and Contract workers

Meeting with Comrades of BSNLCCWF at Indore

14 Sunday Jul 2013

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After reaching Indore to attend the conference of AIBDPA to be held tomorrow, 15th July, I utilised some time discuss matters with the District Secretary of BSNLEU Com. Prakash Sharma, President of BSNLEU and BSNLCCWF Com. Jagdish Soni, ADS BSNLEU Com. Chaudhuri ML and other leaders. A few leading comrades of BSNLCCWF were also there.

After serious struggle, the minimum wage is being paid and ESI and EPF are implemented. But the minimum wage is paid only at the rate for C class cities. Since Indore is B class the rate should be different. Identity cards have been issued. 22 contract labour were retrenched two years back in connection with the agitation for minimum wage. They have not been taken back yet. The wages are being paid in cash. It should be paid by cheque or remitted to the bank account. The need for strengthening the BSNLCCWF was stressed. Almost all the 100 and odd workers are members of the union. Efforts are being made to enrol cent per cent membership. The comrades who attended the discussion were well-informed. There is every chance that Indore will make a strong base for BSNLCCWF.

Why BSNL Management is insensitive to the issues of casual and Contract labour?

13 Saturday Jul 2013

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The letter sent by V.A.N.Namboodiri, President, BSNLCCWF to R.K.Upadhyay, CMD BSNL on the non-implementation of labour laws with regard to the Casual and Contract workers in BSNL is reproduced below:

Sub: Engagement of contract workers  – Violations of The Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act 1970 and other legislations of the Central government by BSNL.

Ref: Govt. of India, Ministry of labour and Employment o/o The Chief Labour Commissioner File no. 14(113) Misc. RLC (Coord)/2012 dated 23rd January 2013.

Sir,

The Federation has been continuously bringing to the notice of the BSNL management about the gross violations of the rules and regulations of the Government of India and also the instructions issued by the BSNL Corporate Office with regard to the payment of minimum wage as per Govt. Notifications through the Gazette, implementation of social security measures like EPF and ESI etc. by the field level officers. The Federation has submitted volumes of details about these violations, circle by circle, with the names of the contract labour, the minimum wage eligible and what is being paid, non-implementation of EPF, ESI etc. But it is regretted that except issuing orders to the sub-ordinate offices/circles for implementation of these regulations, nothing more is done. The field level officers are simply ignoring the directions of the government as well as the corporate office and are bluntly refusing to pay minimum wage, implement EPF ESI etc.  BSNL Corporate office seems to be satisfied with the bogus and false reports of the circles that every order is being fully implemented.

Vide letter cited above, the government of India has taken a firm stand for getting the labour acts implemented failing which the concerned officers are liable to be punished including jail terms.  But in BSNL, not a single officer has been penalised for the violation of these legislations, despite these cases brought to the notice of the BSNL Corporate Office.

In case the BSNL Management, on the basis of the false report of the CGMs, feels that everything has been implemented, the Federation is prepared to prove its statements in the field level if any senior officer is deputed to visit the field level offices along with the Federation representatives.

The gross violation of rules and inhuman exploitation of the workers are continuing for years in BSNL and it is time to put an end to this. It is not of any credit to a PSU like BSNL to be a party or an onlooker to such inhuman exploitation of the toiling workers engaged either by contractor or by itself for the works of BSNL.

I would request you to take immediate necessary action to ensure that the casual/contract workers engaged in BSNL by the contractors are paid the minimum wage as also social security measures like EPF and ESI are implemented and other regulations also implemented.

It is high time that justice is meted out to the casual and contract workers who have been part building up the BSNL and maintaining it all these years.

Yours sincerely,

V.A.N.Namboodiri

President.

Reinstate Retrenched casual/contract workers

27 Thursday Jun 2013

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In Jamshedpur SSA of BSNL, about 45 casual/contract workers are victimised for going on agitation for getting their due minimum wage. The contractors and BSNL Management together were exploiting the workers by denying the minimum wage and other rights of the workers violating the EPF, ESI Act etc. The workers went on strike and got implementation of some orders on the above, but the many workers were retrenched as revenge.

BSNL is a fully owned government PSU. But the field level management is violating the acts of Parliament like Minimum Wage Act, EPF Act, Contract Labour Act, ESI Act etc. with impunity. When they are compelled to implement these orders of the government and can not continue their exploitation, they victimise the workers. By retrenching so many workers the maintenance and repair works are also seriously affected. To what extend the ethics and law-abiding has gone down with these officers of BSNL.

The BSNL top management has to take immediate remedial action to restore normalcy and also for a human face, which the Prime Minister has called for.

Horrible exploitation of contract workers in BSNL

16 Sunday Jun 2013

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A meeting of the Circle Executive Committe of the Maharashtra Labour and Contract Labour Union of BSNL was held today at CITU office. The union is both affiliated to CITU and BSNL Casual & Contract Workers Federation (BSNLCCWF). About 50 comrades were present representing the SSAs Maharashtra.

The reporting by the District Secretaries about the condition of the contract workers was shocking. Most of the orders issued by the BSNL Corporate office or the Instructions of the Govt.f India are not implemented. In some SSAs, only Rs. 2,500 to Rs. 3,000 is paid as minimum wage. In some other SSAs it is Rs. 3,000 to 4,000. These are much below the minimum wages fixed by the Central Govt. and orders issued by the BSNL Corporate office. EPF and ESI are not implemented. These are not checked by the concerned officers and action taken against the culprits.

However, due to the continuous struggle of the union, in SSAs like Latur and Nasik, the situation is somewhat better,though not completely.

The meeting has taken decisions to strengthen the union by bringing all the contract workers in to the organisation and also persue the issues with the management for settlement with the help of BSNLEU, CITU etc.

 

Contract workers Union formed at ALTTC, Ghasiabad

08 Wednesday May 2013

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BSNL Contract Workers Union has been formed at ALTTC, Ghasiabad. Today, 8th May 2013, a meeting of the contract workers was held at ALTTC presided over by Com. R.S.Sagar, Circle Secretary of BSNLEU. About 60 comrades participated. Coms. V.A.N.Namboodiri, President BSNLEU and BSNLCCWF, S.C.Bhattacharjee, Treasurer BSNLEU and Circle Secretary Chhattisgarh, L.D.Shukla and other leaders addressed and spoke about the issues of the contract workers. A few contract workers spoke pointing out their problems.

After discussion, it was decided to form BSNL Contract Workers Union at ALTTC. Office bearers with Coms. L.D.Shukla (President) and R.S.Sagar (Circle Secretary)  were elected unanimously.

Meeting of BSNL Workers at Kolkata

05 Sunday May 2013

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During my visit to Kolkata to attend the Open Session of National Conference of the Confederation of Central Government Employees and Workers on 4th May 2013, a meeting was organised by BSNLEU at the CTO Hall, which was participated by a large number of workers. Com. Sunir Sennel presided and circle Secretaries Coms. Animesh Mitra (W.Bengal and Dy. GS), Saibal Sen Gupta (Kolkata), Om Prakash (TF) and Adhir Kumar sen (Telecom Stores)  addressed. Com. Tapas Ghosh, General secretary BSNLCCWF also spoke.

In my speech, I congratulated the workers of all these four circles who have held the red flag of the union very  high in the recent membership verification and have achieved mor than 66% of the total votes in favour of BSNLEU. I spoke in detail about the post-verification situation when there are two recognised unions and also representations of more than one union in the negotiating councils. The decision of the Forum of BSNL Unions on the revival of BSNL, on achieving 78.2% IDA fixation etc. were also briefed. The issues of casual and contract workers with specific mention of regularisation of casual labour and the agitation in W.Bengal was appreciated.

In the evening a meeting of the leaders of the casual and contract workers federation was held and it was decided that the Memorandum of Demands finalised by the BSNLCCWF Central Executive Committee should be submitted to the CGMs in June with massive participation.

Regularise Left-out Casual labours in BSNL

25 Thursday Apr 2013

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There are about 3450 casual labours working in BSNL for the last 15 to 20 years. They are attending to all kinds of works from line and cable work to clerical and technical jobs. They have been engaged during the DOT period ie. before 01-10-2000. At the time of formation of BSNL, the government assured that all these left-out casual labours will be regularised in BSNL provided that the casual labour has worked one year for 240 days without break. About 6,000 casual labours were regularised accordingly. But due to delay in forwarding their cases to BSNL corporate office by the SSA/Circle administration these 3450 were again left out.

They are getting wages at the lowest pay scale in CDA scale. But they should get in the IDA scale. On the plea of a Supreme Court judgement, they are being denied regularisation. But based on the same judgement, casual workers in Income Tax, Customs etc. are regularised. Despite maximum efforts by BSNLEU and also BSNL Casual and Contract Workers Federation, the management is adamantly refusing to regularise them. This is most unjust. These workers who have spent the best of their youth for DOT/BSNL is being deprived of their rightful claim of regularisation.

Most of these casual labour (2270) belong to W.Bengal. Not a single casual labour was regularised from W.Bengal only due to administrative delay. Had their claims sent in time to Corporate office, they would have been regularised. These poor labours are being punished for the laziness of the heads of SSAs and Circles. And these top officers are enjoying all the benefits that from the company. This injustice can not be tolerated. Even as per Supreme Court judgement, regularisation can be done, but the management is insensitive and completely against regularising them. There is no other way but sustained struggle to end this injustice.

That is exactly what the W.Bengal Circle Union has decided. Two days back, more than 1000 casual workers went on an Indefinite Strike. After certain assurances from the CGMT W.Bengal, the hunger strike has been deferred. CHQ also discussed the issue with the management. But the management is not prepared to concede the demand of regularisation.

This is a black-mark on the face of the BSNL Management. While the Government departments can regularise their casual labour, while the PSUs are even regularising their contract workers, why not the BSNL management can’t do the same. Struggle is the only way to fight against the injustice and make the management to do justice to the labour.

BSNLEU and BSNLCCWF should move together and ensure that justice is meted out to these toiling workers.

Thousands of Casual/Contract workers on Indefinite Hunger Strike

23 Tuesday Apr 2013

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More than one thousand casual and contract workers started Hunger Strike on 22nd April in front of CGM Office, W.Bengal Circle, demanding regularisation of casual labours, IDA wages instead of CDA wages to casual labour, payment of arrears of wages to contract workers etc. The Hunger Strike was led by Com. Tapas Ghosh, General Secretary, BSNLCCWF and others. Com. Animesh Mitra, Dy.GS, BSNLEU and Vice-President BSNLCCWF addressed.

In the evening I met Shri R.N.Rai, Director (HR) BSNL and informed about the critical situation and asked for intervention and settlement of the issues which are fully justified. He assured that he will contact with CGM and find some solution. The leaders at Kolkatta discussed with the CGM WB and on the basis of the assurances given by him deferred the hunger strike. Myself met the Dir(HR) again on 23rd and demanded settlement with out any further delay. My Congratulations for the W.Bengal Comrades for the massive hunger strike that has been organised.

The various issues of the Casual/Contractual Workers are as follows:

                       (i) Regularization of  Left out listed Casual workers,

                       (ii) Timely payment of monthly wages to Casual/Contractual Workers,

                       (iii) Timely payment of VDA,

                       (iv) Retirement benefits after 60 years,

                       (v) Death benefit from Circle welfare Fund on the event of death of a Causal/Contractual  Worker,

                      (vi) Payment of wage to Casual/Contractual Workers as per IDA Pay scale. 

                      

How to make India fully literate

18 Thursday Apr 2013

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On this day, 18th April, in 1991, Kerala was declared as 100% literate state. But our country is not yet fully literate.

Even after more than six decades of independence, India is lagging far behind in literacy among the many countries in the world. As per 2011 census report,  the literacy rate is only 74%, while the world average is 84%. India has also got the largest number of illiterate people in the world. Kerala is the first fully literate State while Bihar lags with only 65% literates.

There are many reasons for this sad situation. Mainly it is the neglect by the Central and state governments. Being literate, getting knowledge, is empowerment. The ruling class does not want the common people to become empowered, since it will be against its vested interest of exploiting the people.

The society has to make the government to act effectively to increase and make full literacy. More funds should be allotted to education, schools should be built in every villages, food to be supplied to poor children, books should be made available and so on. Education is the basic right of the people and the governments have to act.

In this connection, we have to congratulate  Kerala State, where in 1991,it was declared fully literate. On the basis of a people oriented planning by the Left Front Government and with the support and  voluntary efforts of tens of thousands of educated youth and workers for a period of more than one year, this great achievement could be made. This is possible by other states also.

A massive movement  is required to remove the darkness of illiteracy from this country of ours.

Minimum wages raised in Delhi

15 Monday Apr 2013

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The Minimum Wages for all levels of workers in Delhi State have been increased w.e.f. 01-04-2013 as announced by the Delhi Government. The earlier and present rates are given below:

Now                                  From April 2013

Daily wage     Monthly             Daily Wage       Monthly

Unskilled Workers:   Rs. 279.00     Rs.7254.00        Rs. 297.00      Rs.7722.00

Semiskilled workers Rs. 308.00     Rs. 8008.00        Rs. 328.00      Rs.8528.00

Skilled                    Rs. 339.00     Rs. 8814.00       Rs. 361.00       Rs.9386.00

Highly Skilled

Non- Matriculate     Rs. 339.00     Rs. 8008.00       Rs. 361.00       Rs.8528.00

Matriculates            Rs. 369.00    Rs.  9594.00      Rs. 393.00       Rs.10218.0

Though this raise is done as a pre-election strategy, it will certainly benefit the workers. But whether the same will be actually paid to the workers or will the brutal exploitation continue?