Bharat Bandh on September 2 | Fusion - WeRIndia

Trade Unions called for a nation-wide strike on September 2 as government refused to hike the minimum wage they asked. Central trade unions demanded government to solve their problems including the minimum wage of Rs.18,000 per month in unorganized sector. But, the government has rejected their 12-point charter of demands and a strike was called for by the trade unions on Friday to protest the government.

The strike has called for the “anti-worker economic policies in core sectors” and “changes in labour laws” by the trade unions. The unions have 12-point charter of demands. They demanded for a minimum wage of Rs.18,000 per month in the unorganized sector and stopping the “mass-scale privatization of permanent and perennial works. They also demanded for compulsory registration of trade unions in 45 days from the date of application of ILO conventions.

Since 15 crore workers are the members of these unions in both public and private sectors including banks, it is obvious that the strike will affect the country. Furthermore, essential services like transport and supply of power, oil and gas, and other services of telecom, electricity, transport, defense, mining and insurance will also be affected by the strike.

Many autorickshaw unions in major cities have decided to join the strike so the public transport will be severely affected. The government on Tuesday announced to hike the minimum daily wage from Rs.112 to Rs.350 for unskilled non-farm workers.

So far, the Railways have not indicated about their participation in the strike hence the strike may not affect trains. Neither schools nor colleges declared any holiday due to the strike. So, they are likely to be open according to the decision of the local authorities.

Except Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh which is affiliated to the RSS, all major trade unions including INTUC, HMS, AITUC, CITU, TUCC, AICCTU, SEWA, UTUC and LPF are joining the strike.

Image credit: Marine Drive on Bharat Bandh image by Liji Jinaraj is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Image Reference: https://www.flickr.com/photos/karmadude/4763570931