SEHAB workers call off strike after agreement with Shimla MC
Shimla, May 21,
Ending the week-long deadlock over door to door Garbage services in the state capital, the SEHAB Society workers on Thursday called off their strike after reaching an agreement with the Shimla Municipal Corporation administration during talks held with Mayor Surender Chauhan.
With the strike withdrawn, regular door-to-door garbage collection across the city will resume from Friday, bringing major relief to residents who had been facing severe inconvenience due to disruption in sanitation services.
The breakthrough came after a meeting between Mayor Surender Chauhan and representatives of the SEHAB Employees’ Union, including union president Jaswant Singh and other office-bearers.
According to the Mayor, both sides agreed to resolve the pending issues through mutual understanding.
Mayor Surender Chauhan said a decision regarding restoration of the 10 percent annual salary increment, which had earlier been withheld, would be taken during the Municipal Corporation’s Annual General Meeting scheduled for June 4.
He also announced that termination orders issued against 41 employees would be revoked.
Besides this, an agreement was reached to restore 15 days of special leave for the workers and extend the benefits of the “4-9-14” scheme to sanitation workers who had earlier been left out.
Union president Jaswant Singh confirmed that consensus had been reached on all major demands raised by the workers. He announced that the strike had been withdrawn and all employees would resume duties from Friday.
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Earlier in the day, SEHAB workers staged a protest outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office to press for their demands. Talks between the union and the Mayor on Tuesday had failed to produce a breakthrough, resulting in continuation of the strike.
For the past seven days, garbage collection remained suspended in many parts of Shimla, severely affecting sanitation arrangements across the city. The end of the strike has now brought considerable relief to residents.
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