Hoshiarpur- Powercom & Transco Contract Workers Union Punjab is continuously struggling for its legitimate demands. Sharing the details of the meeting, State President Balihar Singh Kataria, State General Secretary Rajesh Kumar Maur, State Assistant Secretary Tek Chand, Office Secretary Sher Singh, Press Secretary Inderpreet Singh said that continuous protests are being held for the demands including regularization of outsourced contract workers directly in the department, implementation of minimum living wage as per 1948 or 15th Labor Conference, cancellation of privatization policy and closure of contract system, guarantee of permanent job pension to workers who died due to electric shock and became disabled.
After a meeting with the Finance Minister yesterday, a meeting was held today on the Police Academy floor with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Power Minister Harbhajan Singh and Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister and Principal Secretary/CMD of Power Department as well as officials of Principal Secretary Finance Department and Principal Secretary Personnel Department. Due to the ill health of the Chief Minister, this meeting was held through PC and other officials including the Power Minister were present in it.
After a long discussion in the meeting, the leaders of the Contract Workers Organization demanded that outsourced contract workers should be directly included in the department, wages should be issued as per the Minimum Living Wages Act 1948 or as per the instructions of the 15th Labor Conference and privatization of the power sector should be canceled, the contract system should be abolished and job pension should be guaranteed to the heirs of contract workers who lost their lives due to electric shock.
The issue was discussed with the Chief Minister. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann assured that the demands of the Power Minister, which include direct inclusion of outsourced contract workers in the department, preparation of draft and increase in salary, should be resolved and another meeting will be held with the organization within 15 days.
A written letter of all these demands was issued by the Manager IR PSPCL. The organization put forward its strike programme and warned the government and the board management that if the issue is not resolved within 15 days, all CHB contract workers will be forced to go on strike again.