Employees of the State Child Protection Society under the Women and Child Development department have withdrawn their week-long indefinite agitation.
The decision was taken following talks held by Minister for Women and Child Development Veena George and Minister for Finance K.N. Balagopal with the CITU leadership on the directives of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
The staff had been staging an indefinite agitation under the banner of the Kerala ICPS Employees’ Union with CITU support since June 1 seeking restoration of their pay, timely renewal of contracts, implementation of three-year contracts, and child protection activities to be implemented in society mode.
During the talks, it was decided that the salary of the employees that had been slashed since September last year would be restored. Besides the pay fixed by the Union government, the State government would sanction additional funds as the State share to ensure minimum wages for all the employees.
Ms. George directed that arrangements be made to ensure to avoid delays in extension of contracts and urgent decision be taken on all files for contract renewal that were under government consideration.
The Ministers assured the meeting that since a policy decision of the government was required to address the issue of contract tenure, it would be discussed with the people concerned. Till the government announced a decision, leave benefits, including maternity leave, would be considered by the department with special care.
The talks were held in the wake of CITU State unit president Anathalavattom Anandan’s special intervention. CITU State unit secretary K.N. Gopinath and Kerala ICPS Employees’ Union general secretary Deepa K. and other office-bearers took part in the talks.
The employees had staged a Secretariat dharna in April, and followed it up with a token strike at the State and district levels to press for a solution. They had alleged that many of them were not even getting minimum wages for over eight months, and it was affecting their dignity and self-respect.
They pointed out that they were not asking for increase in pay but only restoration of what had been cut. Many employees had quit, and this was having an impact on child protection services that should not be compromised on any account.
