Once again, BSNL Employees Union won with good majority in the Membership Verification conducted for electing the representative union for the non-executive employees in BSNL. This is the fourth consecutive time that BSNLEU has won. The membership verification through secret ballot was conducted on 1st February and the result declared on 4th February 2011.
The total number of voters were 2,29,690 and votes polled were 2, 17,321(94.61%). BSNLEU got 1, 06,971 votes with 46.57% of the total votes and the second union NFTE BSNL got 80,300 votes (34.96%). INTUC Union viz. FNTO got 16,951 votes (7.38%). BSNLEU was declared elected with a big margin of 26671 votes.
Although 15 unions participated in the verification, the real fight was between BSNLEU led United Forum and NFTE BSNL led Workers Alliance. The United Forum included four other unions, while Workers Alliance was a 10 union’s alliance. FNTO, the INTUC Union and BMS union contested separately. BMS Union got 4687 votes (2.04%).
BSNL Employees Union since its inception has always been focusing the necessity to save and strengthen BSNL, as also making it financially viable and service oriented.
Improving efficiency was its watch word. BSNL has been making good profit and maintaining its market share despite stiff competition from the private telecom companies. But the anti- PSU policy and unjustified intervention by the government adversely affected the procurement of mobile equipments.
The company naturally went down losing its market share, being unable to provide sufficient lines to the people. It was only due to the sustained struggles by the workers that BSNL got procurement, at least to some extent. BSNLEU took the initiative in bringing all the unions together under the Joint Forum/ Joint Action Committee and organised successful struggles.
BSNLEU participated in all the struggles and strikes organised by the Central Trade Unions and the Sponsoring Committee of Trade Unions as also CPSTU. It could bring some other unions also in to these struggles. It has also given call for participation in the Parliament March on 23rd February 2011.
The good wage negotiation together with a new promotion policy to the non-executives settled during the last two years through struggles and hard bargaining gave an edge to BSNLEU in the verification. These two settlements have benefitted all the workers substantially.
The victory has brought much more responsibilities on BSNLEU. The Central Government, though kept its assurance to the unions not to disinvest BSNL for the time being due to the sustained struggle of the workers, may at any time try to introduce the same. It is the same case with VRS/CRS. On the plea of austerity measures, contract workers, who are engaged for years together, are being retrenched.
The neo-liberal, pro-private, anti-PSU policy and decisions of the government are creating roadblocks for the growth of the company. There is severe discrimination of BSNL compared with the private companies. Being in loss for about Rs. 1,850 crore in last financial year (2009-2010), management will try not to take any decision on financial benefits to the workers.
It is also uncertain what the UPA II government is going to bring through the New Telecom Policy anchored by the new Communications Minister. All these issues will have to be squarely combated by the recognised union.
The fourth consecutive victory by the BSNLEU has to be utilised to advance the united struggles of the working class to protect their rights and advance their just demands.
Courtesy: www.citucentre.org/
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