Stop Wage Theft!,Stop Imposing Over Work, Recruit Adequate Number of Workers!,End Arbitrary Retrenchments, Stop Violating Labour Laws!,Halla Bol Julus, 24th September, 3.30 pm, Sabarmati T Point,General Strike, 28th September,All India Central Council of Trade Unions
Hundreds of contract workers of JNU hold Halla Bol Julus today against continued violation of labour rights in the campus. They have also declared that General Strike will be observed on 28th September if the JNU administration refuses to start negotiation with the Union of the workers affiliated to AICCTU. AICCTU has intimated the JNU administration as well as the office of the labour commissioner regarding orchestrated illegal practices, carried out by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) administration and different contractors providing service to JNU, that subjects the contractual workers to illegal deduction, over work, arbitrary retrenchment, non-payment of the bonus, absence of Emergency Leave and Casual Leave.
AICCTU has submitted a Notice of Strike on 28th September if the administration doesn’t initiate negotiation with the union. For last few years, JNU has witnessed a sharp rise in the number of students followed by a clear fall in the number of worker resulting into unpaid over work on an average worker working in mess, sanitation, horticulture, or garbage-sorting. Given the social reality of India, these are not simply economic exploitations; AICCTU believes that Instead of recruiting more workers in view of the increased work load, JNU administration along with various service providing companies have systematized illegal wage deduction on a monthly basis.
Sham and bogus contractors, like Rakshsk Securitas Private Ltd., A. E. Securitas Security and Allied Services, Q Group, Max Maintenance Services Pvt. Ltd, have deliberately refused to pay the minimum wages along with pay slips and are regularly penalizing the workers speaking against them by retrenching them arbitrarily. For the last more than one year, workers are being consistently paid less than what their salary should be. Paying any workers less than minimum wages has been termed as forced labour by the Supreme Court. JNU administration-contractor nexus has been practicing bonded labour in open day light within the campus.
In the light of the above-described scenario, AICCTU demands that JNU administration will have to fulfil the following demands:
- End wage theft, initiate action against officials responsible.
- Ensure the payment of minimum wages for all contractual workers working in the JNU Campus.
- 20 Emergency Leaves and 15 Casual Leaves must be given to all contractual workers.
- Right to Maternity Leave Must Not be Violated.
- Pay bonus to every contractual worker annually.
- The workforce needs to be increased proportionally with the increase of the students.
- No contractual worker should be retrenched arbitrarily or verbally.
- All the companies will have to provide pay-slips to every contractual worker.
- Grievance Redressal Cell (GRC) has to be set up as directed by the Regional Labour Commissioner.
- Payment of EDLI amount on time to any worker who passed away on duty.
- Implement Equal Pay for Equal Work order issued by Office of Labour Commissioner.
The systematic violation of labour laws in JNU is taking place in the larger context of a regime of institutionalisation of bribe by JNU officials and company representatives.
Be it AE Securitas, Max Maintenance, Rakshak, GA Digital, each and every service provider employed by the administration has been caught in demanding bribe from contractual workers for retaining their jobs. Despite repeated complaints, the administration has not taken any step or started any enquiry.The administration’s complicity in the entire process is clear and loud.The mentioned violations of labour laws have been going on consistently despite repeated intimation to the administration. At a time when workers of the country have been raising fundamental demands of increase in wages and dignified treatment of workers in different places as reflected in recent workers upsurge such as Noida, Manesar, Gurgaon and the recent strike by DTC bus drivers, the movement initiated by JNU workers is a reflection of how even in a Central University workers need to fight tooth and nail to defend their basic minimum legal rights.
AICCTU has submitted strike Notice on 11th September. The Union shall be forced to hold strike on 28th September if the JNU administration or the office of the labour commissioner doesn’t initiate negotiation on the above mentioned demands.
