Category Archives: BSNLCCWF – Casual and Contract workers

Relaxation in land transfer policy by PM

03 Friday Aug 2012

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Relaxation in land transfer policy by PM – The way to large-scale corruption and land grabbing

The pressure from the US President Obama and MNCs are having its effect on the UPA II government. The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, has cleared relaxation for the transfer of government lands for Public – Private – Partnership (PPP) projects  in the infrastructure sector. This may naturally be extended to other sectors also. The earlier orders for getting the cabinet approval before such transfers have been now been removed.

What does this mean? Now the power for transfer is given to the concerned ministries and departments.  Even with the cabinet approval many cases of misuse and corruption has come to the fore. Now with the relaxation of the cabinet approval, it is going to be more misuse and corruption. In the name of PPP, large-scale government land transfers are going to take place to the private corporates to maximise their profits and loot against the interest of the nation.

It is evident that more such pro-private decisions are going to take place in an effort to implement the neo-liberal policies aggressively.

Regularise the Left out casual workers in DOPT / BSNL

29 Sunday Jul 2012

Posted by in BSNLCCWF - Casual and Contract workers

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As a PSU, BSNL is utterly failing in its Human Resources Policy. I will focus on one issue particularly in this respect.

There are around 4,000 casual workers in BSNL who were engaged at the time of DOT and have completed more than 15 to 20 years of uninterrupted service. In the DOT, they were being regularised systematically, even though delay used to take place in many cases.

As per the agreement made between the DOT and Federations before the corporatisation to BSNL, all the left-out casual labours who fulfil the required conditions will be regularised. About 6,000 casual labours were regularised accordingly. But there are still about 4,000 yet to be regularised.

The plea of the management that they cannot be regularised in view of the Supreme Court judgement in the case of State of Karnataka vs  Uma Devi, is not acceptable. Based on the same judgement both the Government Departments like Income Tax, Customs etc. as also PSUs have regularised their left-out casual workers. BSNL can also regularise the workers in the same way.

BSNLEU and BSNL Casual Workers Federation has taken this issue seriously. If the management does not act without further delay to regularise the employees serious struggle become inevitable. The management cannot refuse the legitimate right of the workers.

The meeting of the BSNLCCWF held at Kolkata yesterday which was attended by me along with Com. Animesh mitra, Vice-President, Com. Tapas Ghosh Secretary General, Tapos Banerjee, Treasurer and other leaders explained all the issues raised by the members. It was a very good discussion on all the issues of the casual and contract workers

Re-engage the retrenched contract labour in BG TD

22 Sunday Jul 2012

Posted by in BSNLCCWF - Casual and Contract workers, Uncategorized

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I  express   my strong protest  against the retrenchment of the 300 and odd contract labour in Bangalore Telephone District in the past few days and demand the BSNL management to reinstate them without any delay.

The more than 600 contract labour employed in the Bengaluru Telephone District were only  getting almost half of the minimum wage that is to be paid according to the rules and government notifications. After sustained struggles the management was compelled to pay them minimum wages as per the conciliation before the RLC. But as a retaliation, within months of its implementation, 300 and workers are retrenched and they are without any work. These labours have been working in the BSNL for the last many years. The discontinuation of the engagement has resulted in adverse effect on hundreds of families who were fully dependent on the retrenched workers.

While I was in Bengaluru on 21st June for the attending the District  Conference of the BSNLEU, I went to the place in centre of the town where the retrenched workers were sitting on dharna demanding reengagement.  Along with me Coms. K.N.Umesh, Secretary, CITU and GB Salakki, AGS BSNLEU were present.  While addressing and supporting the agitation, I assured that BSNLCCWF will take up the matter with the Corporate  for reinstatement.

In many places such disengagement is resorted to by the Management and the Contractors when they are compelled to pay minimum wages to the workers. This is violation of the rules and regulations and has got to be opposed. BSNLEU leaders and workers at the field level are requested to help and support the struggles of this exploited section of workers.

Meeting with ALC Delhi reg. casual, contract labour

18 Wednesday Jul 2012

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Along with Com. S.C.Bhattacharjee, leader of BSNL Casual and Contract Workers Federation, I met the Asst. Labour Commissioner, Delhi to discuss about the issues of regularisation, minimum wage etc. The meeting was called as directed by the Labour Minister on the basis of the Memorandum submitted to him personally on 10th May 2012.

Full details of the case was submitted to the ALC and detailed discussions took place.

BSNL can not become a bad and exploiting employer.

04 Wednesday Jul 2012

Posted by in BSNLCCWF - Casual and Contract workers, Uncategorized

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The P&T Department and DOT has a honourable past as one of the most efficient Department/s of the government of India.

While there was exploitation  of  Part-time, casual labour etc. , in stages they were promoted to Group D or regularised. Tens of thousands of workers thus reguarised are the backbones of the DOT/BSNL through whose continuous labour the telecom had spread over throughout the country passing hills and rivers, deserts and inaccessible regions. In installing the great telecom infrastructure all over the country, the Line/Sub-Inspector,Lineman and Casual Labour had a great role along with other officials. Thousands of these workers perished while erecting and maintaining  lines on the sides of the Ganges in the high  Himalayan ranges, in the expanding  deserts of Rajasthan, the Kashmir valley and in the great plains of India. It is true that the new generation is not aware of the same and the old generation might have forgotten them in the changed circumstances.

The present Telecom Mechanics, the Regular Mazdoors, the casual labour and the contract labour belong to that great tradition. Some of them have risen up to the post of executives and higher posts in the non-executives, but most of them still continues in their early position.

BSNL Employees Union and United Forum since formation of BSNL havemade  maximum efforts to improve their condition along with those of the higher level cadres, but as it is, the benefits will always be more at the top than at the lower levels.

The maximum sufferers at present in BSNL are the casual and contract labours engaged by the DOT/BSNL for the last many years. More than 4,000 casual labours who have been engaged in the DOT/BSNL for the last 15 to 20 years are still to be regularised though about 6000  similarly placed casual labour have been regularised till 2005. Only very few have been regularised/granted TSM status afterwards, that too only after contempt cases were filed against BSNL management.

There is no valid  justification for regularising these casual labour who have been engaged on the basis that they will be regularised after certain condition like working for 240 days in a year with out break etc. Almost all these 4000 casual labour have fulfilled these conditions. As far as the 2770 casual labour in W.Bengal and others in other circles have full record of their work maintained by the management itself. They are performing the duties of the regular mazdoor, TM, Sr.TOA etc. but at the minimum wages, though they are to be given equal wages( minimum) of the postsin which they are working. The Laws of the country passed by the Parliament on Minimum Wages, Social Security etc. are flatly denied to them.

This inhuman exploitation in BSNL should be put to an end. It is a shame not only to the management, but to all the employees and unions/associations in BSNL. The casual labour should be regularised with out any further delay.  The BSNL Management has to take immediate action for the same as other PSUs and government Departments have already done.

BSNL should regularise the Casual Labours without further delay.

03 Tuesday Jul 2012

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There are about 4,000 and odd casual labour working in the BSNL since its formation 12 years back. Most of them are in W.Bengal. They have actually been working since the days of DOT and might have worked 15 years or more by this time. There are some who have been in continuous work for more than 20 years. These labours have contributed their entire efforts for making DOT/BSNL in all its progress and installing and maintaining the services.

They were eligible for absorption as regular employees and thousands of such casual labour have already been regularised till 2005. The left out casual labour are also fully eligible for regularisation. Had their names been forwarded in time to the corporate office, they would have been regularised like others.

The plea of the management that it is not possible to regularise them after the Supreme Court judgement in Umadevi vs. Karnataka State don’t hold any water. Many government departments and PSUs have regularised their casual labour even after the judgement and utilising the way suggested by the judgement.

It is the unsympathetic and inhuman mindset of the BSNL management which is the main reason for the non-regularisation. BSNLEU and BSNLCCWF have suggested many methods by which these workers can be regularised. It is a life and death question of the workers and their families to get a job after toiling for the DOT/BSNL for maximum part of their lives.

The BSNL Management should stop their crocodile tears and come to the rescue of these most exploited workers and regularise them giving them a better future.

CITU leaders assure help to casual / contract labour issues

03 Sunday Jun 2012

Posted by in BSNLCCWF - Casual and Contract workers

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In the report to the General Council meeting at Coimbatore, President and General Secretary of CITU has deliberated on the issues of the unorganised workers like casual, contract workers etc. While addressing as fraternal delegate, I spoke about the inhuman exploitation of the casual and contract workers in BSNL. After the speech many leaders met me and conveyed their support to the struggles of their BSNL Casual and Contract workers. They extended their support in organising the Federation in their places. Some of them wante details and I gave them the book on the BSNL casual and contract workers recently published by the BSNLCCWF. It was also much appreciated.

I was also happy that those M.P.s who took up our issue in the Parliament like Com.Tapan Sen, P.Natarajan, K.Chandran Pillai were also there who stated that they will continue their efforts to sort out the issues.

 

Implementation Govt. orders on increased wage to Casual Workers

30 Wednesday May 2012

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The BSNL Casual and Contract Workers Federation has demanded that the wage of the Casual workers in BSNL should be raised from the present Rs.5740 plus DA to Rs. 7000 plus DA  as per the Ministry of Personnel Public grievances & Pensions (Department of Personnel & Training) order  No. 49011/31/2008-Estt-(C) dated 23-01-2012. Letter has been addressed to the Director (Finance) BSNL for early action in the matter.

What is happening in BSNL ?

29 Tuesday May 2012

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Today two casual/contract workers from East UP came to union office and met me. They told me that they were working in DOT/BSNL for the last 14-15 years. Now they have been retrenched after demand of minimum wage etc. was raised by the union and struggles have taken place. Instead, new workers are engaged. Wages for the period the retrenched workers have worked have also not been given.

Is all these things happening in the BSNL, a PSU, even after 60 years of Independence. Is this the ethics of the management? It seems that they are fully a party to the exploitation of the casual workers.  This situation can not continue.

My earnest request to all the unions is that we have to look after these exploited casual/contract workers and assist and support them for getting their rights.

‘Public Investmemnt for private profit’ – CAG on Antrix-Devas deal.

16 Wednesday May 2012

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The Comptroller and Auditor General(CAG)’s report on the Antrix-Dewas deal is eye-opening. It has accused the former ISRO Chairman and certain other retd. senior officers/scientists of ISRO who formed the private company Dewas of using ‘Public Investment for Private Profit’. The deal between the ISRO company Antrix and Dewas   has been cancelled, but if it was implemented, government would have lost thousands of crore of rupees.

This is a symptom that is being surfaced one after another. In the name of Public-Private-Partnership(PPP), the assets of the government/Public Sector are being transferred to the private companies. So far there was no separate Airport charge for passengers. Now hundreds of rupees are collected by the private airports at Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad etc. from the passengers. Earlier the road toll was nominal but now the private companies have started collecting huge charges. Just like the handing over of the nations’ scare natural assets like water, mines, spectrum etc. at throw away prices to the MNCs and private companies, now roads and airports are also handed over. What they will hand over tomorrow have to be seen.