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Karachi: Acting Sindh Governor Nisar Ahmad Khuhro on Friday assured protesting KESC workers that their just demands would be accepted and that their rights were fully protected.
He said this at a meeting with a delegation of KESC trade unions representatives led by the collective bargaining agency that called on him at the Governor’s House.
At the meeting, Mr Khuhro said that the government was determined to protect workers’ rights.
Sindh PPP secretary general Taj Haider, Sindh ANP president Shahi Syed, Karachi division PPP president Najmi Alam, Karachi PPP general secretary Saeed Ghani, member of the KCC PPP Habibuddin Junaidi also attended the meeting.
The acting governor assured the KESC workers that the government stood firmly to safeguard their genuine rights.
He also spoke with Federal Ministers Naveed Qamar and Khurshid Shah and expressed his serious concern over the issue.
Both the federal ministers were reported to have assured the acting governor of their full support to get released the workers’ salaries that had been blocked and that the workers not accepting the Voluntary Separation Scheme (VSS) would be taken back on their jobs.
The CBA and other unions of the KESC informed the acting governor that in “gross violation” of labour laws 4,500 KESC workers had been declared surplus and untrained third party workers were being appointed.
They also informed the acting governor that salaries of the past two months had not been paid to the workers who were declared surplus by the KESC management and services of more than 500 workers had been terminated and all kinds of pressures were being employed by the KESC management on the workers to accept the VSS.
The workers also informed the acting governor that the KESC management had refused to talk to the workers representatives and also refused various proposals given by the government to resolve the matter.
The acting governor was also informed that five third party workers had died due to electrocution and prominent labour leader Lateef Ameem Shibli had attempted to commit suicide in sympathy with the cause of KESC workers.
They claimed that due to these “anti-worker policies” of the KESC management the distribution network was in a shambles and more deaths due to electrocution were feared with the advent of the monsoon.
Karachi could suffer total blackouts due to tripping of feeders in the coming rainy season, they warned.
For more information, contact:
Syed Wajahat Ali
Press Secretary
Governor Sindh
Tel: +9221 920 1217 and 9201201