Hundreds of employees of South-Western Railway under the aegis of South Western Railway Mazdoor Union (SWRMU) took out a protest march and staged a demonstration in front of the zonal railway headquarters here on Wednesday seeking fulfilment of their demands.
Beginning from the EMD Diesel Loco Shed on Gadag Road, the protestors marched to the General Manager’s office on Club Road via zonal headquarters office, Ambedkar Circle and Divisional Railway Manager’s office. They subsequently submitted a memorandum addressed to the General Manager.
After the demonstration in front of the SWR General Manager’s office, they proceeded to SWRMU office where a special general council meeting was held, during which a resolution to go on indefinite strike from the first week of March was taken.
Addressing the employees at the union office, General Secretary of SWRMU A.M. D’Cruz said that a Joint Consultative Machinery (JCM) meeting had not been held since last seven years to negotiate various issues, and discussions at various levels had not yielded any result.
Mr. D’Cruz said that while the railwaymen federation had demanded minimum wages of Rs. 26,000 for Group-D staff, the Seventh Pay Commission had recommended Rs. 18,000 and had also recommended abolition of 56 allowances. The HRA for Class-A cities had been reduced from 30 to 24 p.c, for Class-B cities from 20 to 16 p.c. and for unclassified cities from 10 to 8 per cent.
He said already the charter of demands had been submitted to the government and if the demands were not met, the union would launch an indefinite strike from the first week of March.
