17 lakh Maharashtra govt employees to go on strike from Aug 7 for pay revision

Day to day work at the state government offices across Maharashtra may come to a halt as nearly 17 lakh employees will go on a three-day strike from August 7 to press their demands for the implementation of 7th Pay Commission report, the introduction of five day week and increase in retirement age to 60 years from 58. The call for the strike has been collectively given by the Maharashtra State Gazetted Officers Federation, the Maharashtra State Employees Organization, and the Maharashtra State Class Four Employees Association. 

These unions have expressed serious displeasure over the state government's dilly-dallying over the implementation of 7th Pay Commission recommendations citing that it awaits a report from a one-member committee headed by former bureaucrat KP Bakshi. The government has estimated that it will have to bear an additional burden of a whopping Rs 21,000 crore towards revised salaries and various perks based on the 7th Pay Commission.

The Maharashtra State Gazetted Officers Federation founder and chief advisor GD Kulthe told DNA,'' All three unions had already sent due notice for a three-day strike to the state general administration on July 16. However, there was no response from the government and therefore all three unions decided to go ahead with strike. We don't want mere assurance but action from the government.''

He informed that three unions are unanimous that government should not give any interim hike but implement 7th Pay Commission report effective from January 1, 2016 as announced by the Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

An officer from the state general administration department indicated that the government will reach out to these unions for talks by reiterating the commitment to implement the 7th Pay Commission report. 

These unions demanded that the government needs to fill up 2 lakh vacant posts on a priority basis. On the state government's announcement to recruit 70,000 posts, these unions said it was not a mega recruitment as coined by the government.

Some of the union leaders recalled that the government employees in 1975 had gone on strike for 33 days and again in fiscal 1977-78 for 54 days to demand payment of dearness allowance on par with the Centre.