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Government staff, teachers warn of indefinite strike from April 21 over pending demands
Around 17 lakh government, semi-government employees, teachers and non-teaching staff in Maharashtra have warned of indefinite strike from April 21 if their long-pending demands are not met
Pune: Around 17 lakh state government, semi-government employees, teachers and non-teaching staff in Maharashtra have warned of an indefinite strike from April 21 if their long-pending demands are not addressed by the state government.
The Employees’ Coordination Committee, which represents various associations of government and education sector staff and has issued the warning, said that repeated representations and multiple rounds of agitation over the past year have failed to prompt any concrete response from the government.
The key demands include implementation of a revised pension scheme, filling of vacant posts, restoration of the old pension system for teachers, and resolution of pending service-related issues. The committee also demanded that the retirement age be revised to 60 years, along with better social security measures for employees.
Committee representatives said that although the government had earlier agreed in principle to provide social security benefits similar to the old pension scheme and had even formed a committee for the purpose, the implementation has not materialised. They pointed out that despite a government resolution issued in September 2024 regarding a revised pension system, employees who retired after March 2024 are yet to receive pension benefits.
“The government has failed to take meaningful action despite several rounds of protests and discussions over the past 15 months. If our legitimate demands continue to be ignored, we will have no option but to go on an indefinite strike from April 21,” said Subhash Talekar, coordinators of the committee.
The committee also raised concerns over multiple pension frameworks currently under consideration, stating that the National Pension System (NPS) is inadequate and that employees have rejected certain alternatives such as the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) introduced at the Centre. They claimed that the revised pension framework being proposed is more beneficial and secure for employees.
Along with the strike warning, the committee has begun a statewide awareness campaign across talukas to mobilise support. It has urged the government to establish a dedicated mechanism for regular dialogue at the chief minister’s level to resolve pending issues faster.
