31 fired security guards of IGMC stage protest
Indra Gandhi Medical College 31 fired contract Workers held a protest at Deputy Commissioner Office Shimla on Monday seeking to continue their jobs.
The protest held under the banner of CITU was addressed by CITU State President Vijendra Mehra and other leaders.
Mr Mehra warned that if the fired security personnel were not taken back, CITU would intensify continued demonstrations against the IGMC administration.
He expressed anguish over undemocratic action against the workers and said that despite the political Independence fought by Mahatma Gandhi black laws of the British era are still continuing.
He said that the way 31 security personnel have been thrown out of their jobs is a sheer violation of Section 33 of the Industrial Disputes Act 1947, which declares union-led workers as protected employees.
The decision to fire 31 security personnel is illegal and they should be taken back immediately.
He threatened that if this was not done there would be a strike in IGMC and it would be the responsibility of IGMC and state administration if it would affect health services in the premier hospital of the state.
The workers are alleging that the administration is mentally harassing and torturing security-fired security personnel in IGMC. They are being fired from the job after changing the contractor, which is a clear violation of the agreement made by the IGMC management with the union and Section 25H of the Industrial Disputes Act.
IGMC management, along with the new contractor, is openly disregarding labor laws. Labor laws have been violated in the re-appointment of security personnel working for the last several years.
The protesters demanded that management should re-appoint all the security personnel to the new contractor on the lines of ward attendants and sanitation workers.
State officials especially senior bureaucrats are being blamed by the outsourcing health services staff that they are forced to work in the house of officers like domestic servants failing to which they were shown the door.
Recently CITU has highlighted a similar firing of three Health director employees who were shown the door when they refused to serve in the house of a senior IAS officer.
Present controversy would impact the health services in the IGMC where thousands of patients visit to get health services across the state, the CITU leader said.
