Conservancy workers in Chennai Corporation demand the rehiring of 291 staff who lost jobs after an earlier protest

Over 3,000 conservancy workers participated in the protest two weeks ago in Ripon Buildings demanding better wages as per a Government Order.

Conservancy workers staged a protest on Tuesday demanding jobs for 291 workers, who lost their jobs after participating in a protest earlier this month.

The workers had been demanding higher wages as per a Government Order. The conservancy workers under NULM have been paid just 60% of the wage determined by the government.

Over 3,000 conservancy workers participated in the protest two weeks ago in Ripon Buildings. As a result operations were disrupted in zones such as Ambattur. The civic body identified 291 workers and removed them from the rolls for disruption of conservancy operations. The Goverment Order dated October 11, 2017 fixed the wage at ₹624.50 per day. The conservancy workers have been getting only ₹379 per day.

Representatives of conservancy workers said the civic body should give the workers jobs during the pandemic. “Most of the workers have no other source of livelihood. They desperately need the job,” a representative said.

Corporation officials said the revenue had reduced because of the pandemic. “We will not be able to pay wages demanded by the workers,” an official said. The Corporation collects 3,500 tonnes of garbage every day from 15 zones of the city. The civic body has deployed 19,000 workers for conservancy operations.

The new private conservancy operator will launch operations in October in Adyar.