Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh protests non-implementation of labour laws

NEW DELHI: Underfire from other Central trade unions for being soft on the Centre, the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) — an affiliate of RSS — has lodged a protest to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley that labour laws were not enforced effectively.

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 17

Underfire from other Central trade unions for being soft on the Centre, the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) — an affiliate of RSS — has lodged a protest to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley that labour laws were not enforced effectively. Jaitley is also head of the Group of Ministers (GoM) which was constituted at the behest of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to sort out the unions’ grievances.

The BMS delegation led by its president Baijnath Rai met GoM in the Finance Ministry yesterday. The meeting, which was presided over by Jaitley, lasted for over three hours.

BMS general secretary Brijesh Upadhyay said: “The meeting with the Finance Minister was inconclusive and August 22 has been fixed for another round of meeting.”

“We lodged a protest over the failure of the government to fulfil the promises made to the Central trade unions during their joint meeting with Jaitley on August 27 last year”, Upadhyay said.

During the discussions, the leaders alleged that bulk of the labour problems emanated from ineffective implementation of laws.

They pointed out that although the government had raised the bonus ceiling vide change in the law last year, it was not being implemented.

Finding fault with the present formula for fixing minimum wage, they urged that three members in a family (unit) must be raised to five taking into account old parents of the breadwinner. As per the law, it is obligatory on the part of a person (read bread-winner) to take care of his parents.

Other demands include bringing the services of contract workers on a par with regular employees, abandon any move to disinvest PSUs, social security to workers in the unorganised sector, measures to generate employment and to control price rise. The other unions have already given a call for a nationwide strike on September 2 to press for their demands. The BMS had withdrawn from the last strike on the ground that the government must be given ample time. Hence, it faces a credibility crisis if it again backs out from the proposed strike.