Labour unions hold protest

Office-bearers and activists of various political and labour organisations have threatened to launch an agitation if the Union Government and Punjab Government do not implement their pending demands at the earliest.

An ultimatum was given during the concluding session of the Labour Day celebrations at Dr BR Ambedkar Chowk, under the banner of the coordination committee of eleven outfits.

Improvement of working conditions at private organisations and a hike in the minimum wages, besides reconsideration of new labour laws were cited among the major demands of the labourers.

Speakers, including convener Sukhcharanjit Sharma, Industrial Workers Union leader Gurdev Bhumbla, All India Kisan Sabha leader Baldev Singh Latala and Sikandar Singh Jartauli alleged that successive governments had failed to protect the rights of labourers from exploitation by the corporate sector.

Speakers alleged that the Narendra Modi-led Union Government was bent upon robbing the workers of their rights in the name of labour reforms.