Ludhiana: Seeking regularisation, MC’s sanitation workers go on strike

Around 800 sanitation workers, he claimed, had been working for over decade as contractual workers but in 2022 were denied regularisation citing their age

Sanitation workers of the Municipal Corporation (MC) went on a strike on Friday, halting all waste collection to demand the regularisation of contractual staff.

Protesters staging a sit-in outside the MC office in Ludhiana on Friday. (HT PHOTO)

The strike included workers involved in collecting waste, contractual drivers, and gardeners.

Various workers’ unions protested outside the Municipal Corporation’s Zone A office. Vicky Sahota, state president, Rashtriya Safai Karamchari Mahasangh, claimed that around 3,000 workers had gathered at the protest.

The workers’ will return to work on Monday, he said.

They said hundreds of workers have been working on a contractual basis for years now but they haven’t been regularised yet.

“A contractual worker doesn’t have any job security and is paid around ₹10,000 per month. Workers keep working in the hope of being regularised and securing a stable job. A regularised worker gets over ₹16,000 per month and the remuneration is revised every few years,” said Sahota.

Around 800 sanitation workers, he claimed, had been working for over decade as contractual workers but in 2022 were denied regularisation citing their age. “In 2022 around 800 workers were told that they were ineligible for regularisation as they were now over 42 years. But these people got overage while working only. How is it fair to deny regularisation because of the administrations’ delay in regularisation?” he said.