Garden workers of the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) organised a demonstration on Thursday, demanding higher wages and regularisation of employment.
Organising themselves under the banner of HMDA Garden Contract Workers Union, the workers are demanding minimum wages of ₹18,000, equal wages for equal work as per the Supreme Court direction, and regularisation of each worker who has completed five years of employment.
Though the Telangana government had increased the payment to contract workers of GHMC, the same is not being implemented for neither the other municipal workers nor HMDA workers, general secretary of the Union K. Virender said.
President of the Union V.S. Bose said both the State and Centre are flouting the Supreme Court directives, which favoured equal wages for equal work for contract labourers. Treasurer M. Narsimhma said the wages are discriminatory towards women and dalits, as 80 % of the HMDA garden workers are women, and 90% dalits. Workers from across the city parks participated in the demonstration.
