Gurugram, Jan 2 – After a strike for more than 80 days, sanitation workers employed by the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) announced on Tuesday that they have decided to end their protest and will resume work from Wednesday.
However, the workers warned that if their demands for the regulation of 946 workers on MCG roll, hiring of 2,534 workers through Haryana Kaushal Rozgar Nigam (HKRN) and resolution of pending payments are not met, they will go on strike again.
The regular routine of garbage collection in Gurugram was disrupted by the strike which began on October 11.
“We are going back to work because we are working for the citizens. The MCG officials have accepted our demands. The officials will discuss with the Haryana Chief Minister to implement our demands. They will also form an ad-hoc committee to implement our demands,” said Kailash, leader of Nagarpalika Karamchari Sangh.
MCG workers have been on strike demanding regularisation of jobs, clearance of pending payments and other dues.
The workers said that they were forced to go on strike after MCG ended the contract system under which they used to get a salary of Rs 15,000, and instead were asked to work in the operations and maintenance departments under different sets of conditions, whereby their salary was reduced to Rs 10,400.
“We are here because of our low pay. We are not getting paid for the work that we do. The MCG has threatened us with no work and no pay. We do not think that is fair. We are going to do what we have to do to get our pay because we deserve it,” said a worker.
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