More than 30,000 municipal employees including safai karamcharis of municipal corporations, municipal committees and councils on Wednesday began their three-day strike across Haryana in support of their demands, including regularisation of the contractual employees.
The agitating employees have threatened to go on indefinite strike if their demands are not fulfilled in three days.
The main demands of the agitating employees are regularisation of contractual employees and equal pay for equal work. The other demands included implementation of cashless medical facilities for contractual employees, increasing allowances of both permanent and contractual employees, risk allowance and better safety equipment for those engaged in cleaning sewers.
Earlier, the municipal employees had gone on strike on May 9, which continued till May 24. Garbage had piled up at several places across the state as the standoff between the striking employees and government had continued for more than 15 days in the month of May.
The municipal employees have alleged that the government has failed to fulfill its promises even after a consensus was reached over their demands on May 24.
On the issue of regularization of contractual employees, the State Government had announced to constitute a committee with representatives from employee unions to deliberate over the legal obstacles.
Meanwhile Local Bodies minister Kavita Jaon said that most of the demands have been made and appealed to the municipal employees to take back their strike. She said the minimum salary of the safai karamcharis and sewermen has been increased to Rs 13,500 per month. She also gave details of the other measures taken by the government.