The district has been cured of the plague of Nokkukooli, at least theoretically.
Trade unions have agreed to put an end to the abominable practice of taking wages without work in the name of Nokkukooli and also the practice of unions supplying workers to various sectors.
The consensus was reached at a meeting convened by District Collector K. Mohammed Y. Safirulla and District Labour Officer Muhammed Siyad to convey to the unions the decision on Nokkukooli taken at a meeting chaired by the Chief Minister recently.
Accordingly, strict restrictions will be placed on unhealthy tendencies like Nokkukooli and supply of workers in the district from May. However, Mr. Safirulla said that there would be no job loss due to the enforcement measures.
The district is home to various modern projects, and the cooperation of workers is critical to its industrial growth, the Collector observed.
The meeting was also informed of a decision to convene a meeting of LPG suppliers and lorry owners chaired by the Chief Minister owing to frequent disruptions in services following strikes at LPG plants.
In the meantime, trade union leaders shared their concern over job loss owing to increased mechanisation. They said that they were against taking wages without working but pointed out the practice of middlemen collecting unloading charges even for downloading materials from tippers and lorries using machines without engaging workers. The leaders asked to put an end to the practice.
Labourers who have entered into contract with employers should not loss their jobs. The existing contractual terms should not be violated. The leaders also said that steps should be taken to ensure that employers did not engage their people denying work to the working class. Control Room SP S.T. Suresh Kumar, Aluva DySP N.R. Jayaraj, and representatives of CITU, INTUC, AITUC, NLC, and BMS attended the meeting.
