India : Aequs employees dharna in Hukkeri enters third day
They are protesting against termination of services of 12 workers
Workers serving as operators in different units of Aequs Special Economic Zone near Hattargi of Hukkeri taluk have announced that
they will intensify their agitation against the alleged “injustice” by the company management by organising a rasta roko agitation at the Rani Channamma Circle on Saturday morning, even as their dharna in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office here entered the third day on Thursday.
The dharna was launched under the banner of Krantikari Kamagar Union-Aequs Pvt. Ltd. (SEZ) Unit and Trade Union Centre of India (TUCI) to protest against the sudden and direct termination of 12 workers on the charge of indiscipline and instigation during the last fortnight, said TUCI State secretary K.B. Gonal, district president Maruti Dhagennavar, KKU Aequs president Sanjeev Patil and secretary Maddappa Kondagoli here on Thursday.
The union leaders said that there were nearly 500 workers serving on a permanent basis at Aequs, India’s first notified precision engineering SEZ manufacturing unit for the aviation sector.
Recently, the workers formed a union with the objective of protecting their interests and against the alleged harassment by some staff members.
Accordingly, a team of eight office-bearers was formed. But, the management took it offensively and terminated all these eight workers in one stroke. Subsequently, the services of four more workers were terminated, they said.
The leaders said that the management was apparently trying to remove permanent workers who did not stop operations at the unit despite the injustice being meted out to them. Around 50 to 80 workers are on dharna in shift basis so that production at the unit was not affected. Their intention was not to cause loss to the unit but only to protect their genuine interests and exercise their right to form union/association which was being crushed through arm-twisting methods, they said.
Since the response from the Deputy Commissioner and the Labour Department was lukewarm, the workers decided to intensify their struggle, Mr. Gonal said.
Mr. Dhagennavar said that though the option of challenging the termination orders before the court was open, it would take a long time to settle the matter.
Hence, the workers decided to launch a peaceful dharna and were pleading with the district administration to get them due justice.