A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Monday directed the State government and the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) to file an affidavit in response to a public interest litigation seeking to restrain the KSEB from creating additional financial liability by entering into an agreement with the trade unions for increasing employees' salary.
The Bench led by Chief Justice S. Manikumar issued the directive when the petition filed by the Kerala High Tension and Extra High Tension Industrial Electricity Consumers’ Association came up for hearing.
44% hike in basic pay
According to the association, while the expenditure of the company was far exceeding its income, an agreement had been entered into with the trade unions for increasing the basic salary of employees, right from the mazdoor to the Chief Engineer, by 44% . The salary received by an employee of the company was almost double that of an employee of the Secretariat. The employees were receiving huge amounts as salaries, sidelining the question of survival of the body corporate, solely on account of the collective bargaining capacity of the trade unions.
‘Controlled by unions’
The administration of the board was controlled by the trade unions in disregard of the economic viability of the company. The continuation of such a system was detrimental to the larger public interest. Even the electricity regulatory commission that had become asylum of retired officers would do nothing to check the splurge, the petition said.
The administration of the board was controlled by the trade unions in disregard of the economic viability of the company. The continuation of such a system was detrimental to the larger public interest. Even the electricity regulatory commission that had become asylum of retired officers would do nothing to check the splurge, the petition said.
