Education Department’s non-teaching staff go on pen-down strike

Amritsar, July 7

Calling for a 10-day pen-down strike, clerical and non-teaching staff of the Education Department boycotted all administrative work in the department here on Thursday. They were demanding the regularisation of their services with full pay scale and benefits. Today was the second day of their strike.

Raising doubts over the fulfilment of the promises made by AAP in the run-up to the elections, they said despite the party’s assurance of regularisation for the last 10 months, no orders had been issued in this regard yet.

Members of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Office Employees’ Union said the government was running away from talking to the employees and instead of giving their due to them, the employees were being denied their rights.

“The previous governments led by the Akali Dal and the Congress also used the same strategy of delaying the orders and now the Aam Aadmi Party government was preparing to spoil the future of employees. We are not being given any pension benefits, while Rs 5,000 is deducted monthly from our salary without any thought being given to already pathetic financial condition of employees. There has been no increase in the salary of the mid-day meal office employees since 2019,” said Vikas, president, district unit of SSAOEU.

He said on April 1, 2018, the teachers working under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan were regularised by giving all benefits, but at that time also contractual office workers were discriminated against.

Meanwhile, administrative and clerical work remained suspended at the District Education Office and block offices for the second day in a row after the employees went on strike.