UNORGANISED SECTOR WORKERS BILL 2003

Claim of Unanimous Support is Unfounded

THROUGH a statement issued on February 20, the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) lambasted the government’s claim that the Unorganised Sector Workers Bill 2003 has the unanimous support from trade unions.

The CITU was reacting to a press handout issued by the ministry of labour, wherein it was claimed, inter alia, that, during the tripartite meeting held on February 18-19 at the V V Giri National Labour Institute (VVGNLI), “the social partners unanimously supported the proposal of Unorganised Sector Workers Bill 2003.”

The CITU statement made it plain that four major central trade unions, viz the CITU, AITUC, HMS and INTUC, had conveyed to the union labour minister that any tripartite consultation on the report of the Second National Commission on Labour should be held in the Indian Labour Conference (ILC), convened by the ministry of labour. During the meeting on February 18-19, all the central trade unions as well as representatives of the employers had unanimously raised this demand. It was also urged by both the “social partners” that any discussion that may be held during the two days of the tripartite meeting can at best generate some inputs for an indepth discussion later in the ILC session; they could not be treated as recommendations on the subjects discussed. The chairpersons and labour secretary had then agreed to it. Also, the plenary discussions on the subjects took place in the said meeting and not in the technical committee as was proposed in the programme circulated by the VVGNLI.

The five major central trade unions, that is, the above four and the BMS, had also communicated their views to the minister of labour, in a joint letter dated January 20, 2003. They stated that the draft bill did not reflect the basic features of either the recommendations of the Second National Commission on Labour or the conclusions of the National Seminar on Unorganised Workers held on November 7-8, 2002. The letter had suggested a complete redrafting, requiring a lot more modification even to cover the welfare part.

During the discussions at the meeting held in the VVGNLI, even the employers’ representatives had raised many points with reference to the bill. Hence the claim of unanimous support for the draft bill on unorganised sector workers, as made by the ministry of labour, is totally unfounded, the CITU maintained. (INN)