Company Owners Backtrack, Workers Close Down Factory Gates in Wazirpur

June 29: After the strike of hot rolling steel workers at Wazirpur which lasted from 6 June to 27 June, the owners were forced to compromise when they agreed on all the conditions. But they turned their face from the agreement the very next day after which the workers jammed the factory gates. Subsequently, after an 8-hour long negotiation, the owners agreed on all conditions yesterday (28 June) and assured to start the factories and follow all the labour laws. But on 29 June, the owners are once again dilly-dallying.

Consequently, the workers under the leadership of the 'Garam Rolla Mazdoor Ekta Samiti' have begun to close the factory gates and put their locks on them. Even the women and children of the workers' family are assembling in thousands at the factory gates and are preparing for 'Mazdoor Satyagrah'. The Samiti had warned yesterday that in case the owners refuse to run the factory in compliance with the agreement, they would not have any right to have occupancy over the factory. At the same time, due to this mistake of the owners, even the labour department does not have any right to seal as the workers should not be punished for the fault of owners. Under this circumstance, the workers have no way other than occupying the factories. As of now, the workers are not occupying the factories but are occupying the factory-gates. But if the owners fail to comply, the workers will run the factories by occupying it. Sunny from 'Garam Rolla Mazdoor Ekta Samiti' said that the Factory Law 1948 only terms the owners and their representatives as merely the occupier and it is obligatory for the occupier to follow the labour laws and factory laws. Under such a circumstance if the occupier fails to follow these laws and if the government also does not run it by taking it over, it becomes the constitutional and moral right of the workers to run the factories. As far as the ownership rights are concerned, the workers will give the owners the dividend as per the law. But the workers cannot be punished by the government and labour department for the fault of the owners.

Raghuraj from the 'Garam Rolla Mazdoor Ekta Samiti' told that the owners must note that they can no longer intimidate the workers with the threat of a lockout. The workers of Wazirpur have arisen and if the owners fail to wake up, the relevance of their parasite class will be wiped out from this industrial region. Shivani, the legal consultant of the Samiti told that the owners are playing the game of letting the workers wait and owing to the rumours being spread by the brokers of the 'Inqalabi Mazdoor Kendra', they hope that workers will break because of the wait. But the workers are taking their movement to greater heights with even greater enthusiasm. Shivani told that so long as the owners do not run the factories and so long as the government is not prepared for a takeover, the factories must be handed over to the committee of workers under their management. Shutting down the factories is no alternative and the workers will not allow it to happen.

With Revolutionary Greetings,

Waiting for your cooperation,

Raghuraj, Sunny Singh (Members, Leading Committee, Garam Rolla Mazdoor Ekta Samiti)

Shivani (Legal Consultant, Garam Rolla Mazdoor Ekta Samiti)

Courtesy: garamrolla.blogspot.in