SHILLONG, Aug 29: Employees of the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited wore black badges to work demanding regularisation of the service of the contractual employees and release of their pending arrears.
The MeECL workers, under the banner of MeECL Progressive Workers’ Union (MPWU) will sport the black badges again on Wednesday, following which they will hold a sit-in from 11am to 3pm between September 5 and 16, except on Saturdays and Sundays.
Talking to reporters on Monday, Coordination Committee of Registered MeECL Employees’ Associations and Unions (CCORMAU) president Arju Dkhar said there over 2000 contractual employees including office staff, line staff and home guards security who are working in the MeECL which constitutes almost 50% of the workforce. “We are not asking for regularisation of services of all the 2000 plus employees. We are only asking for regularisation of those contractual employees who have served MeECL for over 12 years,” Dkhar said.
According to him, the MeECL management has proposed to regularise the service of those contractual employees who have completed 15 years of service whereas the union wants the figure to be brought down to ten years and above.
Dkhar recalled that in February, the union had proposed to current MeECL chairman-cum-managing director to regularise those employees who have completed 12 years of service. “The new CMD had agreed that the condition of 12 years was reasonable,” he said.