Leaders of the AP State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) Employees Union Joint Action Committee (JAC) on Wednesday said they would go on indefinite strike from June 13 if their demands were not met by the management.
After talks between the management and leaders of the unions failed to make headway on Tuesday, the latter decided to go ahead with the strike plan. Their main demands include immediate steps to roll back what they allege the management’s ‘ploy’ to downsize the workforce, immediate sanction of financial assistance to save the corporation from huge revenue losses, withdrawal of outsourced employees in buses and roll back the “privatisation of the organisation in a systematic manner.”
‘MD anti-worker’
At a press conference, JAC convener P. Damodar Rao accused Vice-Chairman and Managing Director N.V. Surendra Babu of ‘double standards.’
“On the one hand, Mr. Surendra Babu praises the workers’ commitment and on the other, he is implementing policies that will downsize the staff,” he said, alleging that without taking the unions into confidence, the latter had taken a decision to stop promotions of nearly 4,000 employees in the last five years. Neither the employees were promoted, nor the vacant posts were being filled, he said.
Mr. Rao said the JAC served strike notice on May 9 and instead of resolving their long-pending issues, Mr. Surendra Babu was bringing pressure on the staff for implementation of the ‘anti-worker policies.’
Plan of action
He warned that if the management failed to withdraw these policies, the employees would launch ‘non-cooperation’ protest and if the situation demanded, they would even resort to a flash strike.
Mr. Rao also found fault with the Labour Department for not responding to their strike notice, reminding that the issues raised were related to an organisation with 53,000 employees who catered to the needs of nearly 70 lakh people every day.
In the run-up to the strike, the JAC proposes to organise dharnas and gate meetings on May 28 and 29 and public meetings in all 13 districts of the State in the first week of June.
