The Hindu : Karnataka News : Government employees stick to their demand

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Karnataka

Karnataka

Government employees stick to their demand

Special Correspondent

50,000 employees to go on indefinite strike from Monday

PANAJI: The deadlock between the Goa Government and the State employees under the banner of Goa Government Employees' Association (GGEA) over the demand for upgrading scales of some categories of employees continued on Saturday despite negotiations.

Even as the GGEA hardened its stand over its pen-down indefinite strike and its unfulfilled demands from Monday, Chief Secretary Sanjay Srivastava on Saturday invited a delegation of the association for a second round of negotiations on Sunday at his chambers at the Secretariat, Porvorim, with a view to convince them to withdraw the strike notice in view of the Assembly session.

Appeal

On Saturday, the Chief Secretary made an ardent appeal to the government employees under the banner of association to reconsider their steps and withdraw the indefinite pen-down strike called by them from Monday. Association officials, led by president M.L. Shetkar and general secretary John Nazareth, told presspersons that they had reiterated their demand for upgrading payscales for “left out” categories of employees mostly in class C and D who were around 20,000.

Upgrading payscales

The demand was to notionally upgrade the scales from January 1, 2006 and effective implementation from October 1, 2010.

Mr. Shetkar recalled that earlier on couple of occasions, the Government used the tactics of negotiations and dialogue to prevent the GGEA from pen-down strike, but this time they were determined not to withdraw their plan unless the Government issued an order conceding their demand.

Over 50,000 employees under the banner of the association would join the strike on Monday, he said.

Mr. Shetkar admitted that the Chief Secretary told the meeting on Saturday that the report of the committee constituted under the Law Secretary to study the demand had not been received by the Government as yet.

The Law Secretary was advised to submit the report immediately after the Assembly session. Mr. Srivastava said that as soon as the report was received, the Governmentwould take an appropriate decision keeping in mind theinterest of the employees.

Delegation

However, the delegation remained firm on its stand and declined to accept the request of the Chief Secretary to reconsider the decision of pen-down strike. Mr. Shetkar rejected the Government's contention that the financial implication, if the employees' demands were met, would be Rs. 12 crore a month and insisted that they had shown the Government the calculations that it would be pegged down to Rs. 4 crore a month.

“We are prepared to face an eventuality like the Government invoking provisions of Essential Services Maintenance Act,” said Mr. Nazareth on Saturday in reply to a question from presspersons over the possibility of the Government using the provisions if they go on strike.

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