Over 400 workers of the State-owned Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) were arrested today when they tried to picket the second thermal power station, demanding among other things, service regularisation and equal pay for equal work.
NLC, which has three open cast lignite mines and three thermal power stations, employs 13,000 regular workers and over 14,000 contract workers.
Police said over 400 NLC workers suddenly entered the power station complex to picket the unit and were arrested.
Mr A. Sekar, Secretary, Cuddalore district AITUC trade union, told PTI that the service of over 6,000 contract labourers, working for more than 15 years in NLC, has not been regularised, despite an agreement signed on June 16, 2008.
If NLC failed to implement the agreement, all 14,000 contract workers would go on an indefinite strike from April 18, he said.
Asked about the strike, NLC Human Resources Director, Mr Saratkumar Acharya, told presspersons today that the contract workers’ demands were being considered by the company.