Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday assured journalists and non-journalists employees of newspapers and newsagencies that the Government would look into their demand for setting up of new Wage Boards.
Singh gave an assurance in this regard to a delegation of Confederation of Newspaper and Newsagency Employees Organisations, the umbrella body of apex media trade unions, which called on him to press for its demand for early constitution of the "much-delayed" Wage Boards.
The Prime Minister said he would study the issue, hold discussions with the Labour and Information and Broadcasting Ministers and look into the long-pending demand of over a lakh employees working in the sector, Confederation General Secretary M S Yadav said.
During their 25-minute long meeting with Singh, the seven-member delegation, which was accompanied by CPI National Secretary D Raja, urged the Prime Minister to ensure that the Wage Boards be given a specific time frame to come out with its recommendations.
"We also urged the Prime Minister to set up a Committee to ensure that newspaper managements do not violate the labour law and the freedom of speech and expression is not infringed with by the ever-increasing contractual appointments in the industry", Yadav said.
{{/usCountry}}"We also urged the Prime Minister to set up a Committee to ensure that newspaper managements do not violate the labour law and the freedom of speech and expression is not infringed with by the ever-increasing contractual appointments in the industry", Yadav said.
{{/usCountry}}Other members of the delegation were Confederation Secretary S N Sinha, IJU President Suresh Akhouri, AINEF Vice-President Santosh Kumar and UNI Workers Union General Secretary M L Joshi.