Contract healthcare workers protest in Hyderabad

Contract healthcare workers staged a one-hour protest at Telangana government hospitals, demanding higher wages, timely salary payments and implementation of labour laws. Unions warned of a larger protest and possible strike if the government fails to address their long-pending grievances

Hyderabad: Field level contract healthcare workers participated in a one-hour protest at government hospitals on Tuesday, demanding immediate wage hike and addressing their other grievances.

Led by the Telangana Medical Contract Employees and Workers Union (affiliated with AITUC), the workers announced a mass protest dharna at DME office, Koti on Thursday and threatened to halt essential services and launch a hospital strike if their grievances were unresolved.

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AITUC State Deputy General Secretary M Narasimha said contrary to state government claims contract workers were paid on the first of every month, the sanitation, patient care, and security workers in government hospitals were still waiting for their salaries.

Nearly 20,000 contract employees work across sanitation, patient care, and security wings in state hospitals. Despite years of agitation for a minimum wage hike to Rs 26,000, union leaders stated that successive administrative heads have turned a blind eye.

The demands also include implementation of the Contract Labor Act (including 23 statutory annual leaves), and payment of one month’s salary as a bonus in accordance with the Bonus Act.