Conservancy operations were affected in Adyar, Teynampet and Kodambakkam zones of the Chennai Corporation on Thursday morning following a flash strike by a section of workers of Chennai Municipal Solid Waste Pvt. Ltd. (Ramky Enviro Engineers).
Sources said that operations were affected from Wednesday night in some areas as compactor helpers demanded a hike in their salaries.
A few employees claimed that the company was deducting a portion of their wages to pay the employer's provident fund contribution.
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For the past few days, there has been a bit of discontent among various sections of employees as Ramky officials were pressing for better performance. The firm, which clears garbage from the three zones, presently removes close to 1,100 tonnes per day against their target of 1,600 tonnes. On Thursday morning, Mayor Saidai S. Duraisamy convened a meeting of management and employees and asked them to sort out the issue.
A company official said that the issue was only a teething trouble. He said that workers had misunderstood the concept of cost-to-company on which salaries were calculated. If helpers don't clear garbage near the dust bins or move the bins further up, they are being taken to task. The officials said that the company was also waiting for a consignment of 15 compactors meant for backup in case of failure.