Power artisans to go on strike, striking employees will lose jobs, warns govt

HYDERABAD: Nearly 23,000 artisans working in the TS power utilities will go on strike from Tuesday demanding a hike in salaries and other benefits.

The Telangana Vidyut Employees Union, a faction of the State Electricity Employees Union, called for a strike in support of six demands for artisans in power utilities. Despite the government threatening to invoke the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) and warning that striking employees will lose their jobs, the union has decided to go ahead.

The managements of power utilities also cited with power trade unions earlier this month and an agreement signed on April 19 before the joint commissioner of labour under the Industrial Disputes Act to prevent employees from going on strike.

Talks with the JAC leaders succeeded after the power utilities management had agreed to a seven per cent hike in salaries, providing medical facilities and other issues related to artisans.

Despite this, the Telangana Vidyut Employees Union on Tuesday last called for strike citing six major demands: APSEB service rules for artisans; conversion based on educational qualifications; 50 per cent PRC; 35 per cent PRC for newly-appointed artisans; recognition of all employees with identity cards of TS Genco, TS Transco and the northern and southern discoms as artisans.
Meanwhile, TS Transco and TS Genco CMD D. Prabhakar Rao and TSSPDCL CMD G. Raghuma Reddy warned that artisans going on strike will lose their jobs as per service rules.

TVEU president K. Madhu Kumar has alleged that the managements were taking the help of police to “illegally” arrest artisans at the divisional level to avert the strike.