Unorganised Workers Unions come together in Kolkata

22 unorganised sector unions under two platforms, namely Asanghathit Kshetra Shramik Sangrami Manch and Shramajivi Swikriti Manch, came together to organise a protest programme from 6 to 8 September 2011 in Kolkata demanding rights for the unorganized sector workers.

Asanghathit Kshetra Shramik Sangrami Manch and Shramajivi Swikriti Manch, which organised the programme include unions of agricultural workers, biri rollers, brick workers, construction workers, fish and forest workers, domestic workers, sex workers, hosiery workers, liquor shop employees, Government contract workers and many other trades.

The protest meetings saw representatives from major trade union centres/ trade unions such as AITUC, TUCC, AIUTUC, NTUI, HMS, AICCTU, IFTU, Paschim Banga Shramik Sanghati Kendra, West Bengal Government Employees Union Naba Parjaya, Hawkers Sangram Committee and AWBSRU addressing the gatherings. Human rights and social activists like Amitdyuti Kumar, Sandip Das, Gautam Sen, Kunal Chattopadyay and Sanamatha Ghosh also extended their support, along with cultural activists Prabir Guha, Sutapa Bandopadhyay and Ashim Giri and theatre groups Jana Sanskriti and Komal Gandhar.

Workers in large numbers attended the dharna on 6 and 7 September, and the program concluded with a mass meeting on the 8 September attended by over 15,000 workers. Over the three days, delegations met Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Shri Partha Chatterjee; Labour Minister Shri Purnendu Basu; Backward Classes Welfare Minister, Sri Upendra Nath Biswas and Minister for Fisheries, Sri Abu Hena . They also met Shri Kathiresan, Principal Secretary, Food and Civil Supplies Department; Shri Barun Ray Principal Secretary, Panchayat and Rural Development, and a representative of Public Health Engineering Minister, Shri Subroto Mukherjee.

The chief demands of the workers are as follows:-
Minimum wages
· Fixation of minimum wage for all unorganised sector workers as per 15th Indian Labour Conference norms which amounts to Rs.289.75 per day in rural areas and Rs.315.87 in urban areas at present;
· In the meantime, immediate notification of the revised wages that were in the process of revision by the previous Government
· Strict implementation of the Minimum Wages Act;

Affordable food
· Cheap food for all unorganised sector worker families, starting with 7 kgs of rice per adult at Rs. 2 per kg;
· Pressurising the Central Government to immediately release their huge food stocks at affordable prices to the State Government
· Increased procurement of paddy at minimum support price immediately after the harvest to prevent distress sale by farmers and profiteering by middlemen
· Reforms in the rationing system including removal of bogus cards, corrupt ration dealers and wholesalers

100 Days Work programme
· Providing work immediately after application and paying wages on time.
· Setting up procedures and budget heads for payment of unemployment allowance and compensation for late payment of wages.
BPL- Inclusion of all unorganised sector workers, including workers of closed factories, as priority group or BPL in the 2011 Socioeconomic Survey

Forest rights and demands of fish workers- Stringent implementation of the Forest Rights Act (Scheduled Tribes and Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Rights) Act); giving all relevant facilities to fish workers, and ensuring they are not displaced by mega projects.
Contract workers- Permanent status for all contract workers employed in perennial jobs in the organised sector; regularisation of PHE pump operators and all such Government employed contract workers
Caste recognition – Recognition and extension of facilities available to all socially backward castes and tribes, especially the Majhi community of Midnapore.
Identity-Recognition and issuing of identity cards to all unorganised sector workers especially sex workers.

Demands of the workers were received positively by the officials and Ministers and a follow up action has been promised. A notable promise, that all pending payments to NREGS workers would be done before the festive season in October and that revised minimum wages will be declared in one and a half months were made. The Labour Minister has also promised major steps for unorganised sector workers by May 2012.

The gathering ended with a declaration that the next two months would be spent in monitoring the action of the government. After this, a delegation would meet the Chief Minister in November to inform of the progress made. In addition, a report card to show what the Government has done for the unorganised sector workers in 200 days will be presented on 5 December 2011. If no positive result is achieved, the unions shall also be forced to start an intensive agitation from November onwards.