Sanitation workers from Lady Hardinge’s Medical College (LHMC) and other institutions held a demonstration outside the hospital director’s residence in Delhi on June 28, 2022. They were protesting the institution’s failure to reinstate workers as per court orders.
LHMC and Kalawati Saran Shishu Hospital sanitation workers have been agitating against illegal retrenchment since June 2 when the former administration suddenly fired workers. This move was against a May 31 Delhi High Court order that barred the hospital from terminating its employees. The order related to workers’ demand for minimum wages of around ₹ 7,000, including Kalawati Saran Children hospital staffers.
Workers initially wanted to present their problem in front of the Hospital Administration Director but the official refused to meet with the workers. Therefore, workers under the leadership of the All India Central Council of trade Unions (AICCTU) gathered outside the personnel’s residence to assert their rights.
“There is a clear demand of the sanitation workers that the court order be followed. But it is sad that despite the order of hiring employees, the hospital management is not taking the laborers to work,” said the AICCTU in a press release.
On June 14, Contract Karamchari Union’s advocate Kawalpreet Kaur reminded LHMC authorities that workers cannot be fired even if the contractor is changed.
“Other sanitation workers who were not part of the aforesaid petition, but have paid the ‘monthly cut’ and salary for their extension of contract, have been appointed through a new contractor in your hospital. This highlights the corruption that is going on in your hospital in the case of hiring contract workers,” she said in the letter to the administration.
Further, she accused the hospital and the contractor of coercing workers to take back their case against the hospital in the high court for their personal gains.
“This shows the intention of the hospital is to coerce and punish those workers who demand better living conditions, equal pay for equal work and unionise,” said Kawalpreet Kaur.
The union also sent a legal notice to the contractor but received no reply. Later, on June 17, Deputy Director (Administration) Z A Khan replied to the letter denying any knowledge of “any monthly cut and salary for continuance”. Further, he said any such allegation without confirmation has no merit. It then went on to state that the hospital complied with the court orders and that the “lapse is on the part of the Contractor only”.
Enraged by the response, AICCTU State Secretary Surya Prakash said, “See the helplessness or spinelessness of the Health ministry that they are not able to force the contractor to implement the high court order.”
The AICCTU condemned the hospital administration and their director for standing with the contractor despite the order in favour of workers.
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