Terminal benefits for a year not enough, says CITU; stages stir

CHENNAI: The state unit of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) has condemned the arrest of its state president A Soundararajan, along with other trade union leaders and transport workers, during a protest on Tuesday.

CITU state general secretary G Sugumaran said the arrests were undemocratic and amounted to suppressing legitimate struggles.

Transport workers had launched a sit-in outside depots across the State from August 18, demanding settlement of long-pending dues and implementation of service-related benefits.

Their demands included clearance of retirement benefits for nearly 3,500 employees who retired over the past two years, release of arrears under the two-year wage agreement, disbursal of 12 months’ pending dearness allowance, and implementation of the old pension scheme promised in the election manifesto.

The unions also sought pension revision for 94,000 retired employees in line with existing agreements.

Although the protest was called off on Monday evening after police refused permission, workers resumed their demonstration on Tuesday morning.

Sugumaran alleged that police arrested leaders and workers without prior intimation.

Meanwhile, the Transport Department announced that it had sanctioned Rs. 1,137.97 crore as Ways and Means Advance to settle pending terminal benefits of retired, voluntarily retired, and deceased employees of all State Transport Undertakings (STUs) for the period July 2023 to April 2024.

Accusing the government of reneging on its promises, Sugumaran said, “Workers are only resorting to democratic means to highlight their just demands. Arresting leaders arbitrarily without dialogue is an authoritarian approach that undermines constitutional rights.”

CITU also recalled that sanitation workers have been on strike for the past 13 days, while members of the Local Bodies Employees Federation affiliated to the union were recently arrested in Madurai and other districts while pressing demands for regularisation of services.

The union demanded the immediate release of all arrested workers and urged the State government to hold talks with trade unions to resolve the issues.