Daijiworld Media Network – Bangalore (SP)

Bangalore, Feb 27: 11 trade unions together have given call for a general strike all over the nation on Tuesday February 28. Gurudas Dasgupta, general secretary of All India Trade Union Congress, said that so many unions have come together for the first time in history of the nation at the national level for the same cause. Employees in private sector have also extended support to the strike.

The unions have been demanding abolition of appointments on contract basis, bringing ammendment to the Minimum Wages Act, providing for payment of pension to all categories of employees, and bringing down inflation, among others. For the first time, unions owing allegiance to Congress, BJP, and communist ideologies have joined hands together for the strike.

It is expected that work in banks, government offices, and private enterprises will be affected by the strike. Railways will be the only exception, which will function normally.

Although union labour minister, Mallikarjun Kharge, has requested the unions to call of their strike plan and expressed readiness of the union government to hold talks with them, the labour organizations have dismissed his statement as just lip service that has come at the last minute.  Gurudas Dasgupta criticized the union government for not taking notice of the conference of all India level workers held recently, and not giving any seriousness to the call given for nation-wide strike so far.

Bharatiya Kamgar Sena functioning under Shiv Sena, STU under Indian Union Muslim League, Congress-supported All India Trade Union Congress, and Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh owing allegiance to BJP are among the 11 organizations which have decided to go on strike together.

Employees unions of seven banks, under which eight lac employees are covered, have also decided to fall in line, demanding the managements to take sterner steps to recover non-performing assets and stoppage of outsourcing important banking activities. Out of nine unions in banks, seven have given strike call. State Bank of India, Corporation Bank, State Bank of Mysore etc have warned their customers that their services on Tuesday may remain crippled. It is learnt that many of the officer employees of these banks will attend the office and strive to provide service to customers to the extent possible.