Chandigarh, Hours after Punjab ministerial employees announced extension of their pen-down till September 11, the state government on Tuesday decided to implement 'no work, no pay'.
Punjab Sanjha Mulazam Manch leader Sukhchain Singh Khera said the pen-down strike has been extended till Friday.
Employees working in various government offices including the civil secretariat, directorates, and district-level offices, are participating in the strike, he said, adding that the government has not yet invited protesting employees to discuss their issues.
A pen-down was observed on Tuesday over various long-standing demands, including release of pending dearness allowance.
Protesters are also demanding withdrawal of a letter issued by the state government to show-cause employees over "unauthorised" absence on August 27.
In a communication forwarded to all chief secretaries, financial commissioners and administrative secretaries on Tuesday, the personnel department said the government has received information from various quarters that many employees mark attendance in respective offices, but remain absent from duties, saying such absence, especially during working hours, "inconveniences" the general public.
Accordingly, such employees will be treated as being on "unauthorised absence" and will not be paid salary following established principles of 'no work, no pay', it said.
{{/usCountry}}Accordingly, such employees will be treated as being on "unauthorised absence" and will not be paid salary following established principles of 'no work, no pay', it said.
{{/usCountry}}It will also lead to initiation of appropriate disciplinary action against employees found absent, it added.
Cabinet minister Aman Arora, earlier, appealed to employees to resume their duties so that people of Punjab do not face inconvenience. "I appeal to our employees to end the strike and return to work. The people of Punjab should not face any difficulty because of issues that can and should be resolved through dialogue. We are ready to sit with our employees, listen to their concerns and find a constructive way forward."
He further said the state government stands firmly with its employees and is committed to considering and fulfilling every legitimate demand.
"For us, the three crore Punjabis are one family, and our employees are an equally important part of this family," Arora had said.
On Tuesday, government employees held protests at respective offices at district level and boycotted official work.
The employees went on a pen-down strike despite Arora's assertion on Monday that the strike was "illegal" and the warning of action.
The pen-down was observed at government offices across the state, including directorates in Chandigarh, while ministerial staff of various departments also participated in the agitation.
In Hoshiarpur, employees' union district president Anirudh Modgil alleged that the government withheld 18 per cent dearness allowance , assured career progression benefits and other allowances of employees.
In Ferozepur, employees of various government departments staged a protest at the district administrative complex .
Pippal Singh, district president, Punjab State Ministerial Services Union said the government had been giving assurances regarding their demands for a long time, but no concrete action had been taken to resolve the issues.
The strike caused inconvenience to the general public as government offices remained affected. People who had travelled from distant villages to the district collectorate office to get works done were forced to return without any progress.
The deadlock began August 27 when over three lakh government employees went on a statewide strike, pressing the state government to accept their various demands, including release of their pending 18 per cent DA.
On September 4, the Punjab government announced a DA hike for around 85,000 government employees recruited after July 17, 2020, from 42 per cent to 60 per cent.
But, employees remained adamant on their demand for clearance of DA arrears as per directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
The Punjab government has moved Supreme Court challenging the high court order directing it to release all pending DA and dearness relief dues to state employees and pensioners within a fortnight, contending that the direction to pay arrears totalling around ₹14,191 crore in such a short period was impossible.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.