Trade unions call for nationwide strike Sep 7

Protesting against price rise and the decision to privatise profit making public sector undertakings (PSUs), trade unions affiliated to major political parties, including the ruling Congress, Thursday called for a nationwide strike on Sep 7.

"It will be like a nationwide shutdown Sep 7. The workers in the country are anguished over certain policies of the central government," said R. Chandrasekharan, national secretary of the trade union arm of the Congress party, Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC).

Chandrasekharan said the decision was taken at a coordination committee meeting of all the major trade unions, including the Bharatiya Mazdoor Singh (BMS), Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) and the Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS) here.

The meeting was chaired by INTUC national president G. Sanjeeva Reddy.

He said it was the first time in the history of independent India that INTUC had joined the trade unions affiliated to other political parties to give a call for an all India strike.

"Our major demands include proper implementation of labour laws, immediately stop the privatisation of profit making PSUs, provide enough money for unorganised workers' social security fund and provide jobs for the people who lost employment during the global economic meltdown," Chandrasekharan told IANS.

He said the trade unions took this extreme step as there was no effort from the government to reduce the burden on the workers and their families.