Inter Ministerial Committee Holds Wider Consultations with Trade Unions on Charter of Demands

Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Labour & Employment


27-August-2015 21:05 IST

Inter Ministerial Committee Holds Wider Consultations with Trade Unions on Charter of Demands Appeals to Reconsider Proposed Call for Strike in View of Discussions 

The Second meeting of Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) continued discussion on 12 Demands Charter of Trade Unions  for the second day here today in continuation of discussions held yesterday.   The Committee comprises Shri Arun Jaitley, Finance Minister, Shri Bandaru Dattatreya, MoS(IC) Labour and Employment, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, MOS(IC) Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Jitendra  Singh, MoS DOPT, and Shri Piyush Goel, MoS (IC),Power. During the discussions Trade Unions expressed concern and asked for clarifications on their demands. Addressing their concerns and expectations, the Finance Minister explained policies on which the Government is working and assured that the Government is committed to welfare of labour.  Underlining the importance of role of Trade Unions,  Shri Jaitely  assured the Central Trade Unions that  all labour laws reforms will be done with due discussions and tripartite consultations.  

In view of the discussions held in conducive and cordial atmosphere, the IMC appealed to Trade Unions to reconsider the proposed call for strike on 2^nd September, 2015.The Trade Unions  have agreed to consider the appeal. 

In view of the suggestions given by Central Trade Unions in the meetings held on 19^th July, 26^th August and 27^th August, 2015, the Government assured the following : 

1.       Appropriate legislation for making formula based minimum wages mandatory and applicable to all employees across the country.  

2.       For the purposes of bonus the wage eligibility limit and calculation ceiling would be appropriately revised. Earlier in 2006-07 the calculation ceiling was decided at Rs.3500/- and eligibility limit was wage of Rs.10,000/- per month which is proposed to be revised to Rs.7,000 and Rs.21,000 respectively. 

3.       The Government is expanding the coverage of social security and working out ways to include construction workers, Aanganwari workers ,ASHA workers  and Mid Day Meal workers..  

4.       Regarding contract workers the Government assured that they will be guaranteed minimum wages.  Moreover, the Government is working out ways so that workers of industries will get sector specific minimum wages.  

5.       Government has already enhanced minimum pension for EPFO members and every pensioner gets minimum pension of Rs.1000/- per month perpetually.

6.       Labour laws reforms will be based on tripartite consultations as already stated by the Prime Minister.  The States are also being advised to follow the tripartite process.

7.       For strict adherence to labour law enforcement, advisory has been issued to the State/UT Governments and strict monitoring has been initiated by Central Government.

8.       For employment generation Mudra Yojana, Make in India, Skill India and National Career Service Portal initiatives have been taken.

9.       Abolition of interviews for all primary jobs which do not require any special knowledge/expertise, is being done for transparency and expediting the process of recruitment.

10.   Inflation is lowest in the last many years excepting two items onion and pulses. Government is taking necessary steps to contain the higher prices of these two commodities also.

It was further clarified that there is no ban on filling up of vacancies in Government jobs and all concerned Departments are taking necessary action to fill-up these vacancies. It was further assured that the Government is committed to job security, wages security and social security to the workers. The issue of equal wages for equal work for contract workers is an issue requiring wider consultations and a committee will be constituted, if required.

Appeal to make the one day nationwide strike successful on 2.9.2015

CBS Go-Live of Kathajodi and Telenga Bazar S O under Cuttack City Division, Odisha Circle

















Migration of Sahidnagar MDG, Bhubaneawar-751007 to CBS platform on 27.8.2015

CBS Golive of Tikrapara NDT SO under Balangir Division, Odisha Circle

 

 

OROP row: Modi govt should let Pay Commission decide best possible formula

While Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accepted the OROP, in principle, it would be a good idea to let the 7th Pay Commission find a way to implement it in a manner that is practical in terms of bearing its burden and a reasonable linking of the pensions of the past and future retirees. (Reuters)

 

The four-month extension of the 7th Pay Commission may prove to be a breather for the PM Narendra Modigovernment in its efforts to settle the One Rank One Pension (OROP) issue besides providing more time to look at the ways to generate additional money required to fund the pay-hike burden of the central government employees due to the Commission’s recommendations.

 

The government would do well by referring the OROP issue to the 7th Pay Commission quickly — the thought is already floating in the top government circles — as its recommendations will have a bearing on the demand of the defence veterans as salary and pension hikes for the current employees would mean that the gap between the pension of those who have retired earlier and those retiring from next year onwards will widen further even if they held the same rank.

 

In fact, the OROP was dropped in 1973 following the 3rd Central Pay Commission recommendations, and the demand for reinstating it has been there since then.

 

While Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accepted the OROP, in principle, it would be a good idea to let the 7th Pay Commission find a way to implement it in a manner that is practical in terms of bearing its burden and a reasonable linking of the pensions of the past and future retirees.

 

The recommendations of the commission, if the government accepts it, would be applicable from January 1, 2016.

 

As it has got an extension till December 31st now, the government will have to provide for the additional burden on the exchequer in the next budget.

 

In its medium-term expenditure framework statement laid before Parliament this month, the finance ministry has pointed out: “An important requirement for projections of salaries is to adequately provide for the increase in Dearness Allowance and normal annual increments. However, the projection period falls under the award period of the VII Central Pay Commission (VII CPC). In view of this, a higher than normative growth over the outlay of 2015-16 (B.E.) has been provided for 2016-17; whereas, a normative growth has been provided in 2017-18 (second year of projection period)..…It is pertinent to mention here that, award of VII CPC and its impact on Government finances poses a risk”.

 

Similarly, for pensions too, which includes both Defence and Civil pensions — higher than normative growth has been provided for the projection of outlay on Pensions during 2016-17.

 

The expenditure on central government employees’ salaries is projected to grow to Rs 116510 crore in FY17 from Rs 100619 crore budgeted for FY16.

 

In case of defence, the statement says: “Defence expenditure on Revenue account mainly comprises of salary expenditure of armed forces and their operational expenses. In view of the likely impact of the award of the VII CPC, higher than a normative growth over the base of Rs 1.52 lakh crore (B.E. 2015-16) has been provided during the first year (2016-17) of the projection period”.

 

The Pay Commission, therefore, has the opportunity now to come out with the recommendations according to the government’s pockets so that a higher fiscal deficit burden could be avoided, especially when there is a need to push public investment to boost growth.

 

Source: http://www.financialexpress.com

Go Live of Boudh Court SO under Phulbani Division, Odisha Circle

 

 

 

 

 

Indiapost, a trustable service for e-commerce but challenges ahead

Yangchan Dolma gets excited every time she receives a parcel from Amazon or eBay at her office in Leh though it’s not necessarily meant for her — the 59-year-old is just one of many female postmasters employed by India Post.

 

Business has been good lately, as the government-run postal agency has beaten competition from private courier companies, thanks to e-tailers’ growing preference for its wider reach and a well-entrenched network.

 

The shifting mix of postal volumes in favour of parcels has come to its rescue after India Post lost market share in the past few years to courier companies in the letters segment, its revenue mainstay over decades.

 

“We have the ability and experience to reach far-flung areas and the well-established credibility of our employees that makes us the first option for e-commerce companies,” Kaveri Banerjee, secretary, department of post, said.

 

The huge opportunity thrown open by the e-commerce boom has got India Post’s 155,000 employees, including Dolma, duly excited. But the agency needs to ensure it remains competitive in service delivery and tech-readiness while it rides the new revenue train.

 

Banerjee is bullish, and has challenged her team to achieve 150% revenue growth in 2015-16. In the last four quarters, the company has made steady gains from express/business parcel traffic.

 

India Post recorded R105.51 crore revenue in 2014-15 and R30.59 crore in the first quarter of 2015-16. However, its traffic has fluctuated and that may be a cause of concern.

 

E-commerce companies are choosing India Post for its reach and efficient workforce but complain of its inability to accept large volumes. 

 

“The reach that India Post provides is unmatched and has helped us reach new destinations with this partnership,” Vidmay Naini, director & business head, eBay India, said.

 

Minister for communications, IT and post Ravi Shankar Prasad told HT that in the area of e-commerce shipments, 36% growth was achieved by India Post in the past year.

 

“I have asked all the circles to achieve consistently higher growth in e-commerce cash-on-delivery collections every year,” Prasad said.

 

In 2013-14 India Post handled cash on delivery of about R100 crore while in 2014-15 the figure was R500 crore.

 

“We deliver more than a million orders a year through India Post… service has markedly improved in the past six months with better delivery timelines. The overall delivery timelines have improved by over 25% in the past six-eight months,” Ashish Chitravanshi, VP-operations, Snapdeal, said.

 

India Post has tie-ups with various e-commerce players such as Flipkart, Myntra, Snapdal, StarCJ, etc, to provide distribution and cash-on-delivery services. A pilot project has been started in Mumbai and Bangalore with Amazon for providing next-day assured delivery of Speed Post articles through identified post offices.

 

The minister has directed India Post that e-commerce should become the focus area of postal operations. 

 

“…through the reach of India Post we are enabling artisans/entrepreneurs to start selling their goods not only across India but 206 countries where eBay buyers are present,” Naini said.

 

Another major player, Shopclues, is satisfied with its year-long association with India Post. But it would like India Post to upgrade its logistics.

 

“We have customers coming from tier III and IV towns and India Post has the reach. While we would like to increase the load (business), the challenge is the inability of India Post to pick up load in a fragmented and distributed environment,” Vishal Sharma, vice-president, operations, Shopclues, said.

 

E-tailer Amazon is optimistic about the prospects of its partnership, too.

 

“We are focusing on opportunities to improve customer experience through the use of new technology initiatives. We have integrated Amazon and postal systems to electronically enable information sharing,” Samuel Thomas, director transportation, Amazon India, said.

 

Banerjee is conscious of the growing demand in rural and semi-rural markets. “We are in the process of augmenting technology, pick-up vans, warehouses and clearing systems — Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad have such systems and other major cities will get them soon.”

 

A more hi-tech environment and improved logistics could enhance India Post’s competitive edge to drive revenue growth, experts feel, and boost the feel-good factor for employees like Dolma.

 

Source : The Hindustan Times

Training to SAS and MPKBY Agents on Finacle CBS at Ashoknagar MDG

A training programme  for Small Savings Agents attached to the following Offices was organised on 27.08.2015(Thursday) at 16.45 hrs at Ashok Nagar S O. The agents were made aware of the procedure to perform their activities in Finacle CBS by Shri B Samal, Postmaster, Ashoknagar MDG and Smt. Neelima Rout, S A, Bhubaneswar Division. The help of K K Sahoo, SAS Agent, Ashoknagar MDG was taken.

 

As many as 50 SAS and MPKBY Agents  attended the programme.

Sl No	Name of the PO	Date of Go-Live
1	Pokhariput S.O	26.08.2015
2	Saheednagar PO	27.08.2015
3	Badagarh Brit Colony S.O	28.08.2015
4	Samantapur S.O	28.08.2015
5	Kedargouri S.O	28.08.2015
6	Bapujee nagar S.O	31.08.2015
7	Old Town MDG	31.08.2015

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Appeal to make the nationwide strike on 02.09.2015 successful

CITU leader condemns ‘anti-labour’ govt. policies

The labour unions have called for a general strike throughout the country on September 2 opposing the “anti-labour, anti-poor, anti-farmer” policies of the Union and State governments.

 

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, district president of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), Syed Mujeeb, alleged that the Union government is adopting anti-labour policies by making Provident Fund and ESI optional and investing 5-10 per cent of the PF amount of the labourers in the share market. The Union government has already taken a decision to invest Rs.6,000 crore of the labourers’ money in the share market and has started the process, he alleged.

 

He said instead of making ESI mandatory, the government is encouraging the labourers to take insurance policies from private companies only for the benefit of private companies and not the labourers.

 

He demanded that the Union government withdraw the land acquisition ordinance and implement the recommendations of the Swaminathan panel report to help the farmers so that they get scientific price for their agricultural produce.

 

District general secretary of AITUC (All India Trade Union Congress), Girish, said that all 11 labour unions are participating in the general strike including the employees of KSRTC, BSNL, banks, LIC and Postal department, anganwadi workers, and mid-day meal workers.

 

He said that their demands include controlling the price rise of essential commodities, generating employment, abolishing the contract system of employment, and an universal public distribution system.

 

Leaders of labour unions N.K. Subramanya, V. Chinnappa, S. Raghavendra, Kantharaju and others were present

 

Source :http://m.thehindu.com/

RTP Case update

The next date of hearing for argument is 26.11.2015.

Happy Onam

NFPE WRITES TO THE SECRETARY POSTS

NON IMPLEMENTATION OF DG POST ORDERS REGARDING ENHANCEMENT OF   WAGES  OF   CASUAL LABOR- REG

No. PF-CL/2015                                                             Dated: 27^th August, 2015

                          

 Ref- DG POST  LR. NO. 2-53/2011-PCC DT. 22-1-2015 &  1-5-  2015

             

          This is regarding non implementation of orders of Directorate regarding revision of wages of casual labor. Even though Directorate issued orders  in the month of January vide memo cited u/r  the same is not being implemented at lower level in some circles particularly, TAMILNADU, ANDHRA PRADESH,WEST BENGAL& MAHARASTRA .CIRCLES. The situation is that in AP, KARNATAKA & W.BENGAL circles in some divisions new wages were paid but arrears are not drawn on the plea of non availability of budget.

          Those circles are raising some hypothetical objections which are not related to the issue. Wages are to be paid to those who worked against post without any objection along with arrears.

          Even though it was clearly mentioned in the order to implement 50% DA merger also as per the orders dt. 31-5-2004, the same is totally ignored in almost all circles.

           As such you are requested to issue instructions, so that orders are implemented very soon uniformly throughout the Country very soon at least by 15^th September 2015 by which all casual labor the low paid employees will be benefitted.

      REQUEST FOR RECONSIDERATION OF ORDERS ON STOPPAGE OF DEDUCTIONS FROM    TRCA OF GDS EMPLOYEES- REG

No. PF-CL/2015                                                                Dated: 27^th August, 2015

  Ref- DG POST LR. NO. 18-3/2002-WELFARE& SPORTS DT. 19-9-2002

               This is regarding stoppage of recoveries of CO-OPERATIVE SOCITIES from GDS employees issued vide letter cited u/r issued stating that TRCA cannot be treated as pay.

                In this connection we would like to bring to the notice of Madam, that Appendix 29 of FHB VOL -1 says that “a member of a society providing that this employer shall deduct from his SALARY or WAGES such amount  as may be specified in the agreement and to pay the amount so deducted to the society”. This clearly envisages that the deduction can be made from SALARY or WAGES OF A MEMBER of the Society. It does not specify the PAY/TRCA or any other name. all payments of GDS are being paid from the head “ SALARY” only. As such even though the name is deferent payment is done from the same head from which regular employees are paid.

               Further it is to bring to your kind notice, that many changes taken place in the payments after 2002. GDS re allowed to have PLI, RPLI POLICIES and deductions are done from their salary every month. Number of advances are sanctioned to GDS and recovered from their TRCA every month. In addition any court attachments are also recovered from them.

                At present, as Department allowed as payment bank, it is a must to relax this condition. Now GDS are being benefited by getting loans immediately if required for education of their children. Marriages of their children etc from CO-OPERATIVE SOCITIES without any problem. This stoppage has removed this facility resulting in hard ship to GDS to get loans otherwise.

               In this changed scenario you are requested to reconsider the issue and they may be permitted to obtain loans from CO-OPERATIVE SOCITIES by allowing deductions from salary, so that they will b   e brought out of tensions and work with more vigor.

           We hope that, you will consider the issue positively.

           An early action is solicited.

FIXATION OF PAY OF RE EMPLOYED EX SERVICE MEN-REG

No. PF-CL/2015                                                                Dated: 27^th August, 2015

Ref: - DEPT.OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES&PENSION MEMO NO3/19/2009-ESTT [PAY] DTD.THE 5^TH APRIL 2010.    

   

      This is regarding non implementation of DOPT orders on re-fixation of pay of re employed ex service men in our department. Even though nearly 5 years lapsed the above said orders were not implemented in our Department whereas the same are being implemented in about all other Central Govt. Departments including Railways, Income tax, all Nationalized Banks& PSU’s

      Further it was observed that in our Department also in U.P., BIHAR & DELHI Circles these orders are implemented. This clearly proves that the orders are very clear and needs no clarification. But unfortunately most circles wants clarifications which are not at all required.

      As such you are requested to issue instructions to implement the orders as early as possible so that the feelings of ex-servicemen that they are let down by the department will be removed from their minds.

An early action is requested.