Home BusinessHopeful signs for averting port and dock workers' strike
Port and Dock workers’ unions call for a nationwide strike after December 15 to protest at lack of wage revision may be averted, as the port authorities have expressed willingness to hold talks before the end of this month.
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Five federations representing more than 60,000 workers across 12 major ports in the country have called for indefinite strike after December 15, claiming terms which were agreed earlier at a BWNC meeting on October 31 have not been adhered to.
Manohar Bellani, Secretary, All India Port and Dock Workers Federation, said: “Payment of arrears on allowances to workers are pending since January 2007. Three years have passed since negotiations have started. The managements are now saying that they would make payments on allowances prospectively, which is not acceptable to us.”
Besides, points of difference have also risen on port managements proposing a minimum monthly pay of Rs 7,500 as against Rs 8,200 negotiated at a meeting convened by the Union shipping minister in early September.
S K Shetye, general secretary of All India Port and Dock Workers Federation (Workers), adds: “BWNC has held 23 meetings in these three years. An understanding was reached in September, when we had conceded to a 23 per cent wage hike over basic pay, instead of the 34 per cent we had earlier asked for. We are open to a settlement; the management has to maintain its commitments.”
Failure to reach a settlement this month would result in all the five port and dock workers federations unanimously going ahead with the strike from December 15, severely impeding movement of goods in the country. The five unions are All India Port and Dock Workers Federation, All India Port and Dock Workers Federation (Workers), Water Transport Workers Federation of India, Port Dock Waterfront Workers’ Federation of India and Indian National Port and Dock Workers Federation.