Chandigarh, February 12
On the call given by the Central Trade Unions and joint call of All India Bank Employees Association, All India Bank Officers Association and Bank Employees Federation of India (AIBEA, AIBOA, BEFI), a massive rally was organized by Punjab Bank Employees’ Federation (PBEF), Ludhiana, in front of Canara Bank Bharat Nagar Chowk, Ludhiana. The rally was addressed by P R Mehta, Vice-President AIBEA and General Secretary Punjab Bank Employees’ Federation, Dr Rajinder Pal Singh Aulakh, Senior Trade Union Leader, Naresh Gaur Secretary PBEF, Pawan Thakur, President Punjab Bank Employees’ Federation PBEF, Ludhiana, S.K.Mahajan, Rajesh Verma, Jarnail Singh, Narkesar Rai, Parveen Aggarwal, Yuvraj Maria, Mohit Bhandari, Gurmeet Singh from AIBOA and other top leaders of Punjab Bank Employees Federation attended and addressed the rally.
P. R Mehta, General Secretary Punjab Bank Employees’ Federation (PBEF), stated that the new Labour Codes are a direct attack on the hard-earned rights of the working class. He said that these codes dilute existing labour laws, weaken collective bargaining, restrict the right to strike and make employment more insecure by promoting contractualization and easy hire and fire policies. He further added that bank employees, along with workers from other sectors, will strongly oppose these changes through united and democratic action. It is obvious that under the new labour codes and labour policy, various hard-won labour rights are sought to be taken away. Starting a union, running a union, providing stable leadership to the union, organizing strikes, etc. would be rendered difficult.
Dr Rajinder Pal Singh Aulakh, Senior Trade Union Leader, said that when strikes by the Unions would become difficult, the employer is given freedom to lock out and retrench without the permission of the labour authorities. The bulk of the workers would be taken out of the purview of any labour laws, thus facilitating further exploitation of the workers. Naresh Gaur, Secretary PBEF Ludhiana, emphasized that the labour codes are designed to benefit big corporates at the cost of workers’ welfare and social security. He called upon the government to immediately withdraw these codes and engage in meaningful dialogue with the trade unions to protect workers’ rights and ensure fair labour practices. He added that, when we are faced with huge unemployment, instead of generating more jobs for the youth, the Fixed Term Employment scheme is proposed, jeopardizing the future of the youth.
Gaur said that in the banking industry, we see aggravated attacks like attempts to sell IDBI Bank, selling our private banks to foreign investors, efforts to privatise PSBs, etc. “It is obvious that the Government is moving under the pressure of the IMF, World Bank, etc. and under the influence of international finance capital. Hence, in addition to our sectoral struggles, we have to be a part of the struggles of the general trade union movement. Today’s General Strike is an important occasion for all of us to identify ourselves with the struggle of the working masses and Central Trade Unions”, he asserted.
