Describing the woes of ”Daily waged” employees who are engaged in Government departments on non-permanent basis or casual basis, continuance of such engagement of which is exclusively to the ‘pleasure’ of the Appointing Authority, we have taken the liberty to put them in the category of ”irregulars”. Daily wager denoting no right or claim , legal or otherwise, for becoming monthly wager or quasi permanent wager are thousands in number in Jammu and Kashmir whose fate continues to hang in balance after passing of each day irrespective of number of years they have put in the service. These Daily Wagers are not, what is called in normal parlance, “regularised” which simply means that they are “irregulars”. We , at the outset, disagree with these terms and would like the same to be substituted with “temporary” and “permanent “. However, that is purely an academic issue concerning sensitive personnel matters, trade union related issues and industrial (read Departmental) peace, the real and the important issue is as to why they continue to be kept in the inertial mode of “Casual or Daily Wagers” category amidst sheer uncertainty. How long, after all?
Should we rue over the fate of such employees who have been working in various departments in Jammu and Kashmir for years together but their eligibility for being considered as “Confirmed” or “Permanent” is purely based on the levels of benevolence and compassionate feelings of the authorities in the Government and nothing of the sort on rules, regulations and guidelines. Alternately, should we not express our anguish seeing the plight of these people against the functioning of the administration in respect of making appointments in this way and keeping the engaged persons in a perpetual guessing mode whether being turned out or continued in the some other manner that was comparatively better and in their favour. The very appointment letter from an employer – be it Government, PSU, any private establishment, autonomous body or any institution, broadly delineates the terms of employment, period of probation or temporary period , salary or wages particulars etc as against nothing of the sort in respect of these unfortunate “Daily Wagers” due to which, probably they cannot have the intervention of the courts either. Hence the state of ex-gratia (hood) of the Government authorities is the sole basis, the entire hope and the aspiration or expectations of these daily wagers . And, the authorities as well as political leaders have only been promising them from time to time especially when they took to the course of agitations and protests. These promises of sheer perfunctory nature have never been kept and as a result thereof, nearly 60000 Daily Wagers have been left in the lurch in Jammu and Kashmir.
It could well be imagined that how these employees would be running their daily affairs and sustaining families with the monthly wages of Rs.6000 which also they do not get in time but after a break of months together and usually when they agitate. It can well be gauged as to how so high a number of 60000 have been employed as Daily Wagers? Has anytime, a cabinet decision been taken authorising such appointments? If that is so, why important aspects of their periodic wage revision, confirmation in service and payment of wages / salaries under applicable pay grades etc have not been considered for them. Obviously, all such appointments over the period, have been done circumventing the usual procedures and rules and how to streamline or straighten the initial goofs, perhaps no way is found out to their detriment. Number of such ‘irregular’ employees working in the PWD, PHE, PDD and other Departments for years together , are denied even the benefits of Minimum Wages Act . We urge the Government to take a serious note of the plight of these employees (though even by definition they cannot be called employees) and arrange to confirm their services at the earliest so that their agonies – mental, financial and physical, are over as enough has already turned into more enough in their case. In other words, we mean end of injustice and neglect.
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