Andhra Pradesh govt. responds positively to three of 13 demands put forth by outsourced workers; strike to go on

The Andhra Pradesh government on December 28 (Thursday) held talks with leaders representing outsourced municipal and corporation workers, whose State-wide indefinite strike entered the third day, and expressed its willingness to concede three of their 13 demands.

On behalf of the State government, Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD) Audimulapu Suresh participated in the talks that went on for nearly three hours. On behalf of the workers, A.P. Municipal Workers’ and Employees’ Federation general secretary K. Umamaheswara Rao and A.P. Corporation for Outsourced Services (APCOS) Managing Director Vasudeva Rao participated in the discussion.

The Minister responded positively to their demands for provision of health allowance to sanitation workers in the Public Health Department, underground drainage workers and others; payment of salaries to drivers, UGD workers, water supply workers, work inspectors, others as per norms; payment of salaries to sanitation staff in panchayats on par with municipal workers.

The union leaders said all the promises that Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy had made to the outsourced workers during his padayatra should be fulfilled. This also included regularising their services and equal pay for equal work.

“To this, Mr. Suresh said it would be difficult to pay equally to 90,000 outsourced employees and said the issue has to be discussed further with the Chief Minister,” Mr. Umamaheswara Rao said, adding that the workers will not call off their strike until their 13 demands are met.

“We demanded that outsourced employees be paid ₹20,000 as basic pay as per the 11th Pay Revision Commission (PRC) rules. We also brought to his notice that during former Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s rule, the 8th and 9th PRC were implemented,” the union leader said.

While the Minister asked them to stop their strike and resume their work, the union leaders told him that until equal pay for equal work is promised, they will continue their stir.