Battles Won
TN: Chennai Metro Reinstates Four Dismissed Employees After 58 Months of Legal Battle, CITU, CMRLEU Hails Victory
The employees of the Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) have won a decisive battle against the vindictive measures of the organisation, which dismissed the office bearers of the union for raising issues with the employees. After 58 months of sustained struggle and legal battle, four employees rejoined service on September 27 based on the consent orders of the Madras High Court. Dismissed in 2019 for questioning the management’s decision to outsource regular jobs and withdraw allowances to employees, the four union office bearers of the CMRL Employees Union (CMRLEU) waged a spirited struggle, setting an example for the unity of the employees.
Women in the Workforce
Google employee gets fired weeks after giving birth to baby, says she is heartbroken
A Google employee abruptly lost her job after serving the company for more than 12 years. She wrote in a LinkedIn post that she was on maternity leave, with a 10-week-old baby in hand, when she got to know about her layoff. Several female employees in the past have shared their ordeal of being laid off during their maternity leaves.
South Asia's all female health workers fight for recognition
KATHMANDU/ KARACHI/ GURUGRAM: Hobbling out of a tuk-tuk, Pooja Gupta joined fellow community health workers as they punched their fists in the air and chanted slogans against authorities in India who, they say, pay poorly despite giving them more and more work to do. Thousands of rural community health workers in Pakistan, India, and Nepal demand higher wages and labour rights. Female health workers in India, Nepal and Pakistan released a joint “Charter of Demands” in August via global union Public Services International (PSI) to call on governments and international agencies to recognise and uphold their rights.
Employment News
Trinamool’s long march to Delhi signals a new politics of protest
West Bengal’s ruling party is taking thousands of protesters about 1,500 km to Delhi to make a political point ahead of the Lok Sabha election, about the Centre’s “denial of funds” for MGNREGA, PMAY
Bengal, Centre spar over unpaid MGNREGS funds.
The imbroglio over pending Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and other dues to West Bengal flared up again on Monday with a delegation of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MPs, MLAs and ministers staging a protest at Rajghat in the national capital, alleging that the Centre had deliberately stopped the release of funds. Union Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh hit back, alleging that West Bengal had issued 2.5 million fake MGNREGS job cards due to which crores of rupees of government funds were siphoned off.
RTI queries reveal several irregularities in MGNREGA scheme in West Bengal
The allegation of corruption in the implementation of the MGNREGA in West Bengal remains vague since the communication between the State Government and Ministry of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj remains out of public domain. Response to the Right to Information (RTI) queries obtained by activists, however, shed some light on what are the allegations of corruption. From no trace of work which was described as completed under the scheme, to existing works fraudulently shown as MGNREGA works, jobs cards not being updated, DPRs not made, tendering process fraught with irregularities--the allegations are many.
Mumbai gears up for phase two of Indian Army recruitment rally for Agniveer and regular cadre
The second phase of the Indian Army's recruitment rally for Agniveer and regular cadre will be held between November 1 and 7 here, the defence ministry said on Thursday. This recruitment rally under Army Recruiting Office (Mumbai) covers eight districts in Maharashtra - Mumbai city, Mumbai suburban, Thane, Nashik, Dhule, Palghar, Raigad and Nandurbar, it said.
Tailpiece
Das’s drones are helping to raise farmers’ incomes
While doing a BTech in mechanical engineering from a government technical college, Das would often think about using drones to solve this issue of farmers. He realised that conventional drones would not work. He took on a project to customise a drone and use it for agriculture. It worked very well. His idea involved using sensors with image processing software in the drone. The drone would scan the entire crop acreage and divide it into three zones – green, yellow and red – depending on the extent of damage by a pest. It would then spray pesticide on each of the zones with just the right amount each required.
Analysis
The Workers Left out of the Law to End Manual Scavenging
A decade after the law to end manual scavenging, thousands of workers continue to clean waste with little protection. The narrow framing of the law contributes to this state of affairs. Yet, the legal framework around it exclusively emphasised the cleaning of human excreta, that too under a set of allied conditions. The definition of a manual scavenger in this manner under the law, meant that the law’s ambit excluded scavenging tasks done on the streets, inside and around hospitals, and public toilets under urban public sectors.
As Number Of Salaried Workers Rise In India, So Does Inequality: Report
Upward mobility has increased and caste based segregation has decreased, and yet entrepreneurs belonging to SC and ST communities are still rare. SC and ST owners are underrepresented compared to their percentage of the total workforce, even in the smallest firms, while the overrepresentation of upper castes rises with the size of the firm. SC/ST owners are more uncommon in larger firms. Owners of companies with more than 20 employees are hardly SC or ST.
Skilling
Jan Shikshan Sansthan skills development scheme to cover graduates
In a major revamp of the skilling scheme for non-literates and neo-literates, the government has extended the scope of the scheme to cover graduates, enabled public-private partnership in establishing of Jan Shikshan Sansthans (JSS) and introduced the sunset date of March 31, 2026 to bring an end to the scheme.
Media Workers
After Delhi Police's Raids, Two – Including NewsClick Editor Purkayastha – Arrested Under UAPA
In total, 37 men and nine women were raided and questioned in connection with FIR number 224/2023. While the men were taken to the Delhi police special cell’s office, the women were questioned at their residences. Some documents and electronic devices like laptops and mobile phones were seized by the police for ‘examination’.
Press Council of India Sets Up Committee to Study Retrenchment of Journalists During Pandemic
New Delhi: The Press Council of India (PCI) has set up a sub-committee to look into the retrenchment of journalists during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journalists who were laid off during the March 2020-February 2021 period have been asked to fill up an online form or send an email with the details.
Providing Jobs
118 candidates get employment order at Rozgar Mela after PM Modi launches process virtually
As many as 118 candidates were given employment order during the ninth edition of Rozgar Mela held in Dharwad on Tuesday.
Mobilising Workers
Labour Discontent in Durgapur Steel Plant Over Biometric Attendance and RFID Tags
Kolkata: Stringent protests have erupted at the Durgapur Steel Plant (DSP) over the forced implementation of biometric attendance and the issuance of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags to employees. The Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU)-affiliated Hindustan Steel Employees Union (HSEU) initially initiated the movement, citing concerns about compromising employees' individual freedom. Now, all seven major trade unions of the steel plant have joined the movement. After jointly submitting memorandums to the DSP authorities, the unions are organising gate meetings, in-plant gatherings, and larger protests and demonstrations outside.
Punjab: Farmers' ‘rail roko’ protest hit train services; 150 passenger, 90 mail express cancelled so far. 10 points
The ‘rail roko’ protest by the farmers in Punjab entered its third day on 30 September. Farmers in large numbers squatted on tracks as part of their 'rail roko' agitation to demand a financial package for losses incurred in recent floods, a legal guarantee to MSP, withdrawal of cases regarding agitation in Delhi and compensation and jobs for families of farmers who died during the agitation. The three-day protest called by farmers in Punjab's Amritsar led by the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee began on 28 September
Massive Rally of Agricultural Laborers in Kolkata Demands Fair Wages
Kolkata: Tens of thousands of agricultural labourers staged a massive protest rally at Kolkata’s Rani Rashmoni Avenue on Monday to demand a daily wage of Rs 600 and 200 annual workdays. “I earned Rs 300 daily during the Left Front’s rule. After 12 years, the amount has decreased to Rs 200. The rural rich are exploiting us,” Asim Manna (39), who came from Kalna (Purba Bardhaman) to participate in the protest, told Newsclick.
Haryana: Workers Protest Against Labour Dept's Decision to Revoke Registration of Their Union at Bellsonica
In one of its orders, the Haryana government's labour department has cancelled the registration of the Bellsonica workers' union over granting the membership to one of the 'contractual workers'. The letter refers to section 4 of the Trade Union Act 1926 to substantiate the cancellation of the union, which says that only the workers employed by the company are eligible to get union membership.
Working Class Lives
Pushed to the Limit: The Working Lives of India’s Freight Train Drivers
Loco pilots are being pushed to the limit to cover the work in the railways – through lengthening work hours, continuous night shifts and reduced rest times. These conditions go a long way in explaining the recent spate of fatal railway accidents.