Now Reading: Chennai sanitation workers protest for wage revision enters 8th day
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Chennai sanitation workers protest for wage revision enters 8th day
Around 300 sanitation workers, most of them women, continued their protest in Chennai for the eighth day on Thursday, demanding a meeting with Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay and a revision of…
Around 300 sanitation workers, most of them women, continued their protest in Chennai for the eighth day on Thursday, demanding a meeting with Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay and a revision of daily wages from Rs 762 to Rs 832. The workers, who have been agitating near the Allikulam court complex, say barricades were erected on August 26 to stop them from marching to the Greater Chennai Corporation headquarters.
The workers are also seeking permanent jobs for contractual staff, a weekly paid day off, one-year maternity leave for women with a third child, menstrual leave, and a food allowance. They want the withdrawal of cases filed during a 2025 agitation. Union leader Jyoti said they would continue protesting until their demands are met, even if it takes 100 or 200 days.
The wage revision to Rs 832 was announced by the then Chennai District Collector in April this year but has not been implemented. Workers say talks with ministers and officials have failed to resolve the issue. CM Vijay holds the Municipal Administration and Water Supply portfolio, under which the Greater Chennai Corporation falls.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The demand for a wage revision from Rs 762 to Rs 832 reflects a gap of just Rs 70 per day, but for workers earning roughly Rs 23,000 a month, it represents about a 9% increase. The protest also highlights the precarious status of contractual workers in urban local bodies across Tamil Nadu, where permanent jobs are rare and benefits like maternity leave often do not apply. The state government's response to this agitation, led by a union aligned with the ruling party's own labour wing, will signal how seriously the administration takes its promised welfare measures. The key number to watch is whether the District Collector's April order is formally notified and implemented in the coming weeks.
Source: thenewsminute.com
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
