*Striking staff to be dismissed
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Sept 28: Adopting approach of confrontation with its over 4 lakh employees, the Government today described their strike as `illegal”, decided to enforce `No Work No Wages’ formula and warned that period of unauthorized absence from duties would be treated as break in service and might even lead to dismissal of employees from the services.
The Government announced a series of measures to ensure presence of the employees in their offices. In this regard, the General Administration Department (GAD) tonight issued a series of directions to the Administrative Secretaries, Head of Departments (HoDs) and Deputy Commissioners.
The Government circular No. 29-GAD of 2013 tonight came just a day after the talks between Cabinet Sub Committee (CSC) headed by Finance Minister Abdul Rahim Rather and Employees Joint Co-ordination Committee failed in Srinagar.
Sources said the Government adopted harsh approach towards the employees as the JCC had issued five days protest calendar with all protest days falling during autumn session of the Legislature when need of the employees was most felt in the offices. The JCC had called for protests on October 1, 2 and 3 and lock out in offices on October 4 and 5. The Legislature session is beginning on September 30 and would last till October 8.
The Government circular re-produced a High Court order of 2010 to describe employees’ strike as `illegal”.
“It quoted the order as: “the Government employees have no fundamental, legal or statutory right to go on strike. There is also no moral or equitable justification for the employees to proceed on strikes and go on extending it. Rights of the people as whole cannot be subservient to the claim, even if genuine, of an individual or of a section of the people”.
Noting that sympathetic attitude of the Government shouldn’t be construed as its weakness to deal with the situation that has arisen due to frequent strikes/hartals by the employees, the circular pointed out that strikes/hartals by the employees have been held as illegal.
“Most of the demands put forth by the Employees’ Unions on different occasions have been conceded despite financial constraints,” the circular said.
It added that the Government after considering all aspects of the matter and avoidable sufferings caused to the public at large by frequent strikes by the employees has decided to enforce the principle of `No Work No Wages’.
“Actions as may be deemed appropriate would be taken in accordance with rules against those instigating/participating in strikes/hartals. Such actions shall include treating the period of unauthorized absence from duties as `dies-non’/break in service and might even lead to dismissal of such employees,” the order warned.
The Government has directed that the Administrative Secretaries shall furnish the attendance of the employees under their control to the General Administration Department (GAD) on day to day basis indicating details of the employees found absent from duties.
“The Head of Departments (HoDs) shall ensure that no employee, who is absent from the office without proper leave, is allowed to mark his attendance subsequently. The salaries of employees should be drawn only after certifying that the employees have not remained on unauthorized absence,” it said.
It asked the Deputy Commissioners to furnish details of attendance of all employees of their district to the GAD on daily basis through the concerned Divisional Commissioners indicating total number of employees including those present and absent with reasons of absence.
The circular said the CID wing of the Police department shall furnish necessary inputs to the Government on day to day basis about the attendance/absence of the employees from the offices.
The JCC, which spearheads the ongoing agitation of the employees, has been demanding among other things the extension of retirement age of the State Government employees from 58 years to 60 years at par with Central employees, regularization of daily wagers, removal of pay anomalies in the clerical cadre and budgetary support for Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs).
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