Gurgaon: MCG employees on Tuesday extended their ongoing strike till Aug 15, alleging delay in issuing orders on their demands. The decision was taken at a state-level convention of Municipal Employees Union, Haryana, and Fire Department Employees Union held at Karamchari Bhawan in Rohtak on Tuesday.The protesting employees are demanding regularisation of sanitation workers, sewer workers and fire department drivers and firemen; an end to outsourcing of sanitation and sewerage work; regular recruitment against vacant posts; and implementation of the old pension scheme. They alleged that all demands had been agreed upon during a settlement on May 13, but haven’t been implemented. The unions said the agreement covered all demands, including bringing contract workers onto departmental rolls, ensuring minimum wages and labour-law benefits until regularisation, recruitment against vacant sanitation and sewer posts, changes to the ex-gratia policy, medical facilities and benefits for workers completing 58 or 60 years of age. They claimed authorities had agreed to regularise sanitation workers, sewer workers, gardeners, beldars, electricians, helpers, clerks, fire department drivers and firemen by June 30.Protesters also sought the reinstatement of retrenched workers, including 3,480 employees in Gurgaon, a Rs 5,000 risk allowance for sanitation workers and uniform and risk allowances for fire personnel. They further demanded financial assistance of Rs 50 lakh and regular employment for the dependents of employees killed in the line of duty.Basant Kumar, state vice-president and unit president, appealed to mass organisations, social groups and the general public to support the striking municipal employees.MCG employees staged a protest at the old MCG office before marching through Agrasen Chowk, Agarwal Dharamshala Chowk and Gurdwara Road. They later joined a district-level rally of Sarv Karamchari Sangh Haryana. “Nearly 2,800 sanitation workers of MCG are on strike. We were given false assurances. None of our demands has been met. So, we have suspended work to protest against the authorities,” said Kumar. The sanitation workers have suspended their work of sweeping roads across the city.MCG officials said that the decision on the policy has to be taken by the state govt.
