Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) Agents’ Organisation of India (LICAOI) will organise a conference on September 3 to discuss issues of commission, “unfair” targets, and press for demands of benefits for women agents.
Announcing this here on Thursday, Jayanthi B. Shetty said 150 members were expected to participate in the conference. Working president of the organisation Gangadhar Poojary said of the one lakh agents in the State, 40,000 were women. “Even though agents across the country have given LIC policies worth Rs. 12 lakh crore, apart from commissions, they are not given anything. There is no provident fund, pensions, maternity or health benefits for agents,” he said.
He said commissions given had remained unchanged since 1971, even though prices of essential commodities had increased after that.
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The corporation’s target regime, which dictated that contracts to agents and agencies would be terminated if they did not sell Rs. 1 lakh worth of insurance policies a month, was unfair, Mr. Poojary said. “In rural places, agents cannot sell policies worth Rs. 1 lakh. Because of this, contracts of 4.2 lakh agents across the country have been terminated,” he added. A press note stated that the objective of the conference on September 3 was to provide a forum for women agents to air their grievances. Speakers would elucidate on the adverse impact of privatisation on the insurance sector. The conference would start at 10 a.m. at the Town Hall in the city.