The working committee meeting of the Water Transport Workers’ Federation of India in Chennai on Sunday urged the Union government to withdraw the Major Port Authorities Bill 2016 which aims to privatise major ports in the country.
A statement issued here on Monday said that the Bill had been referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture, which had heard the view of port trade unions. But it is learnt that the Union Cabinet has rejected many of the vital recommendations that protect the interests of the nation and ports, workers and pensioners,” the union said.
The union has demanded that the Bill be scrapped and all proposals should be dropped.
Trade unions also want the government and port authorities to stop BOT and PPP port projects.
They have called for extension of equal pay for workers who are engaged in similar work as that of regular workers.
Port workers want the regularisation of the contract workers engaged by port trusts.
They also called for a Centrally operated common pension fund to be evolved for all major ports to ensure uninterrupted pension payments. Port unions are also against the proposal to outsource port trust hospitals and port fire and rescue services.
They have decided to organise a ten-day campaign from March 10 highlighting the demands raised by unions.
A full-day protest will be held on March 21 at all major ports.
