Following administrative reasons, a total of 150 outsourced staff hired for Covid duty during 2020-21 at a Delhi Government-run super speciality hospital were on Friday sacked by the authorities.
Covid-19 patients are not coming for admission for the last few months and currently all beds reserved for coronavirus patients are “lying vacant” at the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital (RGSSH) in east Delhi.
“About 500-600 staff — sanitation workers, security personnel and nursing staff —were hired via an outsourcing agency for Covid duty during 2020-21. As no Covid patient is getting admitted and as we have surplus of staff, therefore, 150 were removed today after much consideration,” the official said on Friday.
A group of terminated outsourced staff also sat on the floor of the hospital’s lobby to protest the decision, the officials said. Sources claimed that another factor behind their sacking was “below satisfactory performance”.
“However, these staff are all trained, and if tomorrow Covid cases rise again, we may rehire from among these people, accordingly,” the senior official said.