Engineering workers in Vijayawada demand increase in honorarium, compassionate recruitment

MLC K.S. Lakshmana Rao and leaders participating in the A.P. Municipal Workers and Employees’ Association State-level meeting in Vijayawada on Sunday, to discuss the issues faced by engineering workers.
| Photo Credit: G.N. Rao

Municipal workers should be paid honorarium on par with sanitation staff as per G.O. no. 36, members of the Municipal Workers and Employees’ Federation said.

At a State-level conference organised by the federation, affiliated to the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), in Vijayawada on November 10, Sunday, the members said the TDP-led NDA government should recognise the contributions being made by the engineering staff and provide job security to them apart from leave and safety equipment.

At present, the workers, some of whom have Industrial Training Institute (ITI) or Polytechnic certificates, are paid anywhere between ₹15,000 and ₹18,500. They are demanding that their honorarium be increased to ₹21,000.

MLC K.S. Lakshmana Rao, who participated as chief guest, said while the governments change with time, the problems of the engineering workers remain the same. He said they often have to tread on dangerous paths as part of their work in the departments of street-lighting, town planning, veterinary, water supply, among others.

“However, despite the nature of their job, neither are they given any safety equipment nor any job security. Despite their hard work, they have always been shortchanged by the governments,” the MLC said.

Federation State general secretary, K. Umamaheswara Rao, said the conference was organised in the hope that the government could take a decision in their favour during the Assembly session. “The engineering workers had to face a lot of issues during the YSRCP rule. Then, Minister Nara Lokesh, who was on his padayatra, gave a patient hearing to their problems and promised that he would increase their honorarium. He should keep his promise,” Mr. Umamaheswara Rao said.

He said there are 13,000 engineering workers in 123 municipal bodies in the State. He added that recently a few of them were removed from their positions without any notice.

Apart from increasing their wages, the workers have been demanding that the government provide safety facilities, uniforms, shoes, soaps, oils and towels. Their other demands are: in the event of death, ex gratia should be increased from ₹5 lakh to ₹7 lakh, vacant posts should be filled immediately, and the kin of family should be considered for employment in cases where a worker dies.

The federation, which has been organising protests for the last one month, has planned more meetings and demonstrations in the coming days.