No Trade Union Rights for Government Employees in West Bengal

The New Government’s New dictum

The State Government is on the way to curb the Trade Union rights of its employees. This undemocratic attitude of the State Government was evident first with the curtailment of trade union rights of the police employees, a few days back. The recent statement of the labour minister of TMC led West Bengal government, Purnendu Basu, has made it clear that government wants to abolish the trade union rights of its own employees. It was the Left Front government, which had given ‘full trade union rights’ to the Government employees in 1980 by amending the Service Rule. This right to the government employees was a part of democratisation of the state bureaucracy, where the employees were given the right to protest against the government.

The TMC government wants to throttle this right of the government employees to protest against the government. The labour minister has already stated that the Government employees can not criticise the Government or build up any movement against the Government or hold any rally. This is nothing but an autocratic step on the part of the government.

The State Coordination Committee has strongly criticised the statement of the labour minister. The General Secretary of this organisation has said that the Coordination Committee had to struggle even at the time when these rights were not given to the government employees. Many of their leaders were suspended from the service as the repression of the vindictive Government. He also remembered the words of the Late Chief Minister Jyoti Basu who used to say that the employees must not leave their trade Union Rights or right to strike, if necessary they must struggle for those rights. He has expressed his confidence that the co ordination committee shall continue its struggle if the rights are curbed. The West Bengal State Government Empolyees Federation(New Phase) has also strongly condemned and protested the statement made by the labour minister. By referring Purnendu Basu’s reference to the Labour Legislation of 1926 he said that it is not acceptable to refer the Act of 1926,which did not provide the trade union rights.

The TMC led new Government in the state is trying to curb all kinds of democratic rights of the people. While the plan of the Government is to curb the rights of the employees in near future, the employee’s organisations have decided to build up struggles against such autocratic decision of the government.

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Courtesy: CPIM West Bengal Web site