MARGAO
In a major decision that may bring to a halt collection of waste and other civic services, Margao Municipal employees and workers have resolved to strike work from Thursday over the non-payment of Diwali bonus and payment of uniform allowance.
Chief Officer, Agnelo Fernandes, however, struck a defiant chord by saying employees and staff cannot claim bonus as a matter of right since it is linked to productivity. He further said the MMC could not pay the Diwali bonus this time in view of the prevailing financial position, with the civic body struggling to mop up revenue.
Goa Municipal Employees Association leader Anil Shirodkar declared the strike on Wednesday evening after they came face to face with the Chief Officer in the chamber of the Municipal Chairperson Lyndon Pereira. “While the City Fathers were sympathetic to our demands, the Chief Officer had no decency even to discuss the matter with the employees. He came to the Chairperson’s chamber 15-20 minutes later and outright rejected the request for the Diwali bonus. We have not come across such a Chief Officer heading the MMC in recent times,” Shirodkar said.
Later, addressing the workers at the building entrance, Shirodkar declared the indefinite strike, beginning from Thursday, saying the Municipal services such as garbage collection will not be carried out by the workers from tomorrow. “Apart from payment of bonus, the Council has not paid the uniform allowance. The Chief officer cannot even arrange money for the payment of salaries, which the employees received after the due date. We have every reason to strike work and we will strike work from Thursday,” Shirodkar thundered.
Chief Officer, Agnelo Fernandes reminded the workers that they cannot claim bonus as a matter of right, saying bonus is linked to productivity. He further reminded that the MMC has been somehow arranging money for the payment of monthly salaries when other employees and workers in other civic bodies are awaiting their payments for months.
