To commemorate the completion of the centenary year of International Women’s Day, the Women’s Committee, a Sub-Committee of Raipur Division Insurance Employees’ Union, decided to take out a torchlight procession against price rise and privatisation of the public sector. Accordingly, branch units of Durg, Bhilai, Dallirajhara, Rajnandgaon, Kanker, Jagdalpur, Dantewada, Dhamtari and Mahasamund participated in the rally.
In Raipur, the procession was marked by the presence of almost all the cadre of insurance employees, agents, policy-holders, eminent citizens as well as representatives of fraternal trade unions. During the procession slogans were raised by the women against privatisation of the public sector in general and insurance industry in particular. Leaflets were also distributed. Later, a massive meeting was held at the busiest junction of Raipur, Jaistambh Chowl, which was addressed by Ganga Sahu, Secretary, Women’s Committee, Dharmaraj Mahapatra, Joint Secretary, CZIEA and a woman member of MPMSRU.
At the divisional headquarters, International Women’s Day was celebrated during the lunch hour.
IWD CENTENARY CELEBRATIONS IN HYDERABAD
March 8, 2011, was observed as “Centenary International Women’s Day” by the Hyderabad unit of the All India Insurance Employees Asssociation (AIIEA). Lunch hour meetings were held in the city and at mofussil centres to mark the occasion. A centralised meeting was held in the Hyderabad divisional office premises in which more than 300 women participated.
K Venu Gopal, General Secretary, AIIEA, N Aruna Kumari, Convener, zonal working women’s committee, greeted the women and appealed to them to work toward ending violence against women and the girl child and ensuring equal rights for women and a secure future for themselves.
A week prior to Women’s Day, the women’s sub-committee of Hyderabad organised several competitions such as essay writing, solving jumbled words, two-minute elocution competition on ‘Media and Women’ etc. More than 50 women from various units participated enthusiastically in the competitions.
The employees of the Hyderabad division donated liberally to enable the women sub-committee of ICEU Hyderabad to take up social activity by donating almirahs to the ‘Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Trust’.
MIDDAY MEAL WORKERS OBSERVE DEMANDS DAY
Thousands of mid day meal workers all over the country observed ‘All India Demands Day’ on 24th March 2011 as protest day, at the call of the All India Co ordination Committee of Mid Day Meal Workers. The march to Parliament held on 25th November 2010 had given a call to observe the all India demands day as a protest day against the indifferent attitude of the Central government towards the problems and demands of the mid day meal workers.
In Kerala, the mid day meal workers observed the protest day by wearing black badges. In many places protest meetings and demonstrations were held at block level which district leaders of the CITU and the Union addressed. The Union demanded that the central government must also declare minimum wages for mid day meal workers as done by the LDF government in Kerala. The union also demanded that pension and other benefits be made available for mid day meal workers.
In Maharashtra the union held demonstrations at district headquarters in Nanded, Parbhani, Osmanabad, Beed and Jalna districts. Delegations met district collectors and submitted memoranda demanding minimum wages, pension and a stop to privatisation. The union also demanded regular supply of food grains and honorarium to the workers. Vijay Gabhane and other CITU leaders led the programme.
In Himachal Pradesh , demonstrations were held in all districts. In Hamirpur, the mid-day meal workers union affiliated to the CITU held a protest in front of the DC office there to highlight their demands. CITU district secretary Joginder Kumar said though the government had been spending a huge amount on this scheme, mid-day meal workers were being paid a pittance.
The activists raised slogans demanding regularisation of their jobs, giving them minimum wage regularly and granting them leave, pension and provident fund facility etc.
In Shimla the demonstration was led by leaders of CITU and the union.
In Manipur the union held a dharna at district headquarters. In Imphal, the dharna was addressed by Loitang Devi, State President and Kshetrimayum Santa, State CITU General Secretary. A memorandum was submitted to the state education director.
In Andhra Pradesh, protest demonstrations were held in all districts on 17th February. The mid-day meal workers were demanding arrears of their wages for the past seven months. The government is supplying rice and is to pay Rs three a day per student for preparation of sambar, but it has not been paying the amount for the past seven months. In Visakhapatanam, more than six thousand activists working in four thousand schools, held a demonstration. They were manhandled brutally by the police.
Mid-day meal workers union secretary S Aruna said that though they were bleeding after the lathi charge, they were taken to the police station instead of hospital. Even the women police behaved rudely with the workers. The CITU has demanded suspension of the two sub-inspectors who were responsible for the incident and has complained against the indecent behaviour of the police with the agitating women workers to the State Human Rights Commission.
The union organised ‘rasta roko’ on 18th February in several parts of the district to protest against the incident. Such ‘rasta rokos’ were organised in six mandals. Later, the Police Commissioner ordered an enquiry into the incident.
In Karnataka the Union organised a Secretariat March on 8th April 2011.
ASHAS DEMONSTRATION IN MUMBAI
Around 2000 ASHA workers staged a demonstration on 21 March 2011 at Azad Maidan in Mumbai, near the Maharashtra Assembly, under the banner of the Maharashtra ASHA Workers Union (CITU). Their main demand was to get a fixed allowance from the Maharashtra state government. Some state governments are already providing fixed remuneration to ASHA workers i.e the Left front government in West Bengal is paying Rs. 800, the LDF government in Kerala is paying Rs. 300 and Rajasthan Government is paying Rs. 950 to ASHAs every month.
A delegation of ASHAs and CITU representatives met the State Health Minister Smt Fauziya Khan who agreed that their demands are genuine. However, she said that the state government cannot do much without a decision of the Central Government on this issue. She assured that they would talk with the CITU and ASHA representatives on the demands of ASHAs, within a month, after a discussion with the state administration.
She agreed to fulfill the following demands:
1. Medical Kits will be issued to all 64 thousand ASHA workers and 3 thousand ASHA supervisors in the state within a month.
2. A separate place for ASHAs to sit will be allotted in every PHC.
3. Women who are above the poverty line will get the benefits of JSY; which earlier only below poverty line women were getting.
4. The government will provide uniform and identity cards to ASHAs.
5. An order will be issued to include an ASHA worker in every Village Health Committee.
6. Rules will be framed for the Maharashtra law on Patients rights and Medical services.
The discussions with the Health Minister were reported to the ASHA workers sitting on dharna, by Shankar Poojari and Madhuri Kshirsagar. The ASHAs firmly resolved to intensify their struggle if their demands are not implemented. Suman Pujari, Madhuri Kshirsagar, Armaity Irani, Shubha Shamim. Punjabrao Gaikwad etc from CITU Maharshtra, all played a crucial role in ensuring the success of this programme.
SUCCESSFUL STRIKE IN MNC IN SEZ
Sanmina is an American multinational company functioning for the last 3 years in the SEZ in Oragadam in Kanchipuram district adjacent to Chennai, with operations in 21 countries. There are 703 regular workers including 125 women and 420 contract workers, manufacturing Tower Signal Equipments and other electronic items. A CITU union was formed but the management was not prepared to accept the right of workers to form a union, and was prepared to give a wage increase if the workers agreed in writing not to have the union. At present the wage paid is between Rs.3100 and Rs. 5300. Discussion with labour department officials did not give any results and the workers went on strike from 15th February, demanding recognition of the union and wage increase.
In the meantime, the management advertised in news papers for recruitment of new workers. The Union approached the Chennai High Court which restrained the management from recruiting new workers. Despite this order, there were efforts to recruit workers, which were foiled by the workers. The workers were also not allowed to go into the SEZ area or hold peaceful demonstrations in front of the factory gates. On this issue also the High Court directed the Development Commissioner and Police not to interfere in peaceful demonstrations inside the SEZ premises and outside the factory gates of Sanmina.
Two groups of workers, numbering about 200, along with CITU district President S. Kannan and Secretary E. Muthukumar who were to march to Chennai in 2 groups to represent to the Chief Minister on 3rd March were arrested and released in the evening.
As all the management efforts to break the unity of workers failed, it was forced to participate in discussions with the union. Finally, a settlement was reached with the CITU union on 16th March for wage increase, in the presence of the Joint Commissioner of Labour, Chennai. The management agreed to an increase in wages ranging from Rs.1000 to Rs. 3000.
The management representatives said that their company’s tradition of 40 years in 21 countries of giving wage increase unilaterally, in the month of June, has been broken for the first time. This agreement is for one year and the management has also agreed to discuss other issues with the union, later. For the union the agreement was signed by A. Sounderrajan, E. Muthukumar and S. Kannan; who are the CITU State General Secretary, District Secretary and President respectively. This month-long strike and settlement in an SEZ is another notable achievement in the struggles in the recent period.
ANGANWADI EMPLOYEES OPPOSE SWAVALAMBAN SCHEME
The BJP government in Karnataka has decided to implement the Swavalamban scheme for the anganwadi workers and helpers who have been demanding pension, gratuity and other social security benefits to those being retired. The state government held 13 joint meetings with the Karnataka Anganwadi Noukarara Sangha, also discussing the issue of implementing the LIC group insurance scheme in these meetings. However, in December last year, the state government initiated measures for the implementation of the Swavalamban scheme, which was strongly opposed by the union. The state government threatened the anganwadi employees with stern disciplinary actions if they held any protest actions. It tried to intimidate the anganwadi employees and the union members into accepting the scheme and attempted forced deductions from their wages. However, the union continued the struggle against the scheme that does not guarantee pension, instead, it is meant to boost the share market. Huge demonstrations were held in front of the offices of the deputy directors in 21 districts. A state level convention was held on 30th March.
On 31st March, more than 4000 anganwadi workers and helpers surreptitiously reached the Chief Ministers’ house and started demonstrating against the scheme. The police and administration were taken by surprise. Receiving no concrete assurance from the government, the union decided to continue the demonstration in front of the Chief Minister’s house all night. Ultimately the concerned minister had to come to them and agreed to withdraw the concerned government order and announce gratuity to the anganwadi employees at 60 years, when the Chief Minister returned in the city.
The demonstration was withdrawn after this assurance.
Courtesy: www.citucentre.org/
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