National Federation of Postal Employees
1st Floor, North Avenue Post Office Building, North Avenue, New Delhi – 110001
Circular No.PF-1(e)/8/2008 Dated 30th July 2008
Mobilise for the success of 20th August Strike
The National Federation of Postal Employees as a constituent of the Confederation of Central Government Employees is participating in the one-day strike on 20.08.2008 called by the majority of Central Trade Unions and All India Federations and Unions of Central Government, State Government, Teachers Organisations, Public Sector organisations of Banks, Telecom, LIC and other associations and unions. The Strike Call has been endorsed by the Joint National Convention of Confederation of CG Employees, State Government Employees Federation and Teachers Organisations held on 8th July 2008.
The Price rise is skyrocketing and the inflation rate is touching the ever highest mark of 12. Our getting compensated by dearness allowance cannot be a reason to ignore the price rise as the millions of suffering people might turn against the organised working class movement if we do not struggle in their defence. The Strike demands include rejection of pay commission's negative recommendations like abolition of Group D and outsourcing etc as well as against the disparity between the minimum and the maximum wage between the Group D and the Cabinet Secretary. The Charter also demands regularisation of Gramin Dak Sewaks and grant of pension to them.
The UPA Government has now mustered a majority of its own despite the withdrawal of support by the left parties. As soon as the UPA winning the trust vote in Parliament, the attack has started on the BSNL Telecom. There are strong indications that all the pending bills in Parliament on Pension Privatisation, banking and insurance liberalisation etc would be taken up with the support of non-left parties for adoption. This means the protective umbrella so far available for us for more than four years has been removed. Therefore there is no other option for us but to forge strong relation with all the working class organisations and struggle along with them to defend our existence. Any let up would result in our distinction.
NFPE therefore calls upon the entirety of the Postal Workers to participate in the one-day strike on 20th August 2008. The Strike Notice would be submitted to the Department of Posts by the NFPE and all General Secretaries of affiliated unions / associations on 4th August 2008 after holding a demonstration in front of the Postal Directorate. Our Circle Secretaries are requested to undertake organisational tours to Regional Headquarters as well as in the State Headquarters and hold strike preparatory mass meetings through the platform of Circle Co-ordinating Committees. Circle Office bearers of all Circle Unions may be requested to span out to address Mass Meetings of postal workers in all divisions and branches to make the strike 100% success. Joint movement along with the rest of the CG Employees may also be given due importance under the banner of C-O-Cs.
The Copy of Strike Notice to be submitted to the Director General Department of Posts and the Charter of Demands are enclosed.
Pay commission Issues
The Cabinet Secretary, DOPT Secretary and the Expenditure Secretary had met and discussed on 21.07.2008 and they had a meeting with the PMO on 28.07.2008. The Empowered Committee was expected to sit and finalise before it goes to the consideration of the Cabinet for approval and implementation. But we do not know as yet as to whether the basic modifications sought by the Staff Side are acceptable to the Government or not. It is also not clear as to whether the Official Side would call the Standing Committee members of the Staff Side for any interaction. The likelihood of the same is very remote. Shortly everything will come to light. The confederation has decided to convene the urgent meeting of the Extended National Executive immediately on coming to know of the developments from the Government and consider appropriate course of industrial action including Indefinite Strike.
As far as the sectional issues of the postal employees with regard to 6th CPC are concerned, it is most unfortunate that the Postal Directorate has not felt the urgency to convene the assured formal meeting. The TBOP category of PA/SA cadre in particular is deeply under dissatisfaction. Certain proposals exchanged with us by the former Secretary [P] in an informal way are yet to be given shape in a formal way for the consideration of the staff side. If the Many other issues related to different cadres are also not clear even though the NFPE had submitted a detailed Note to the Department of Posts. NFPE has addressed a letter demanding the formal meeting early. We have discussed with FNPO Secretary General and a joint letter is being addressed to the Secretary [P] seeking the formal meeting immediately. We hope the Department would understand the concern of the postal employees and not ignore the issues forcing us to resort to avoidable agitations after the clinching of common issues at the National Council level. FNPO Secretary General also assured full cooperation for a joint action if there is any need for agitations on postal sectional issues.
GDS Committee gets extension
Natraja Murti Committee has sought and got three months extension of time upto 25th October 2008. We are afraid that the extension might lead to a situation similar to the situation prevailed in 1996 wherein the delay caused by the Government in considering the Talwar Committee Report resulted in elections intervening and further long wait for its implementation. The request for extension of time was therefore opposed by NFPE and the GDS Union but the Government has granted the extension. The reason attributed for further grant of time is that the GDS Committee is yet to receive the study report from an outside agency employed by it for analysing and submission of certain statistics. It is informally told that the GDS Committee cannot finalise before that but however we feel that there could have been a separate report on pay structure etc immediately on the basis of the pay commission's recommendations and another report on other aspects after the receipt of the outside agency report. Unfortunately the Department did not consider any necessity to consult the staff side before taking such crucial decisions. The CWC meeting of the GDS All India Union is meeting shortly in Dew Delhi and the leadership is in touch with the NFPE.
File Court Cases for Substitute wages
The Department of Posts violated the Main Finance Orders and eliminated the quantum of HRA/CCA from the calculation of per day wages for the substitutes working in leave vacancies of Postman / Group D after V CPC. NFPE took up the issue strongly with the Directorate but the official side was adamant. The ED Union of Chennai North and South Divisions filed case in CAT and won. The Department went to Madras High Court on appeal but the Honourable Court turned down the appeal and upheld that the order of the department rejecting the HRA/CCA quantum from determination of daily wages is wrong. The Directorate thereafter ordered payment of arrears from 1.1.1996 but funnily restricted it to only those GDS and substitutes who went to court! Moreover the payment is restricted to the members of the Chennai North and South divisional union at the time of filing of the case in CAT. The stand of the department is totally unethical and discriminatory. The NFPE raised the issue with the Member [P] several times but Directorate not ready to even implement the spirit of the Court directive.
NFPE therefore requests all concerned to file fresh cases in the respective CAT of their jurisdiction by citng the favourable judgment of Madras High Court and Chennai CAT and the discrimination shown by the Department between those who have gone to court and the others who have not gone to court so far. The copy of the above two favourable judgments would soon be made available to all in the NFPE website for downloading and giving to respective advocates. Those who go to court would be benefited by thousands of rupees as arrears from 1.1.1996.
Quota and Advertisements
The Divisional and branch Secretaries are requested to send the quota for NFPE immediately on receipt of subscription amount from the DDOs every month. The response from divisional secretaries for whom advertisement tariff have been sent is most disappointing. They are also kindly requested to collect at least one advertisement and sent to NFPE for publishing in Postal Crusader. SThe strength of an organisation lies in its financial strength also. Any federation struggling to meet its financial requirements cannot efficiently function. The numerically strong NFPE can be financially strong also provided the rank and file leadership extends a helping hand in this matter. We would like to remind our divisional and branch secretaries that many of them have not even responded to the earlier call of 10/- donation per member so far. All should understand hat we cannot carry on with such a weakness for ever and that to take on the resourceful department and the government, we are also to be resourceful.
Circulate to all
Dear Circle Secretaries! We request you to take all out efforts for the success of the strike. We also request you to circulate the copy of this circular to all the divisions and branches under their jurisdiction.
With Struggle Greetings
Yours Comradely,
[K.Ragavendran]
Secretary General
COPY OF STRIKE NOTICE TO BE SERVED ON 4.8.2008
PF- 12(e)/2008 Dated 4th August 2008
To
The Director General
Department of Posts
Dak Bhawan
New Delhi – 110001
NOTICE
Sir,
In accordance with the provisions of Sub Section (1) of Section 22 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, we hereby notify that all the Postal / RMS / MMS / Administrative / Postal Accounts Employees will go on strike for one day on 20.08.2008. The demands for acceptance on which the employees embark upon this one-day strike are detailed in the Charter of Demands enclosed.
[K.Ragavendran]
Secretary General
[K.V.Sridharan]
General Secretary
AIPEU Gr. 'C'
[Ishwar Singh Dabas]
General Secretary
AIPEU Postmen & Gr. 'D'
[Giriraj Singh]
General Secretary
AIRMS&MMS EU Gr. 'C'
P.Suresh
General Secretary
AIRMS& MMS EU MGs & Gr. 'D'
[S.P.Mukherjee]
General Secretary
AIPAOEU Gr. 'C' & 'D'
P.Rajanayagam
General Secretary
AIPAEA
CHARTER OF DEMANDS
- Take urgent steps to contain price rise through (a) universalizing the public distribution system throughout the country to cater all essential commodities at controlled price through PDS; (b) ban on futures and forward trading in all essential commodities; (c) reduction of tax in petrol and diesel; (d) stringent action against hoarding and black marketing;
- Lift ban on recruitment in Government Services; Remove the negative and discriminatory features in the recommendations of 6th Pay Commission and finalise the same for implementation in consultation with the employees organisations; Expedite regularisation and grant of pension to Gramin Dak Sewaks;
- Strict implementation of all labour laws particularly in respect of minimum wages, working hours, social security and safety and stringent action against all cases of violations; stop contractorisation and outsourcing;
- Scope of the unorganised sector workers social security bill pending in Parliament should be expanded to cover all unorganised sector workers irrespective of BPL or APL category to ensure a national minimum social security benefit for them as per unanimous recommendation of the National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganised Sector (NCEUS) and Parliamentary Committee on Labour with Central Government funding;
- Farmers Loan waiver scheme to be extended to loans from private money lenders; nationalized banks to extend easy credit to peasants at lower interest rates;
- Expedite wage negotiation for the employees of Central PSUs including contract workers without any conditionalities.
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K.Ragavendran
Secretary General NFPE
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