Workers of the Government owned Swadeshi and Bharathi mills on Monday abstained from work and continued with their strike for the second day in succession demanding the government to immediately disburse festival advance and revoke the suspension of five workers of the Public Sector Undertaking (PSU).
V. Kamalakannan, secretary of Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) said that the government would generally issue festival advance to permanent and casual workers in the Swadeshi Bharathi mills for Pongal.
Festival advance
While festival advance ranging from Rs.5,000 to Rs.10,000 was provided in other textile mills in the Union Territory this year the payment was not provided to workers in the Swadeshi and Bharathi mills. The workers resorted to a sit-in protest on January 14 in support of their demands.
However, the management had suspended five permanent workers pending enquiry for resorting to protests. The workers were not given an opportunity to present their side, he said.
Mr. Kamalakannan said that workers affiliated to various trade unions in Swadeshi and Bharathi mills had decided to intensify their strike protesting against the suspension of their colleagues.
Workers have decided to picket the main gate of the mills on Tuesday protesting against the unilateral decision of the management, he said.
An official of Swadeshi and Bharathi mills said that salaries had been disbursed to workers in the PSU without fail. The management was not able to pay the festival advance this year due to financial constraints.
“We had given workers an assurance to make alternative arrangements and disburse the festival advance to all within a few days. However, the management was forced to take disciplinary action against five workers as they were instigated to launch protests by a few office bearers of trade unions,” the official said.
