NLC employees to launch indefinite strike from tomorrow

Around 15,000 employees of public sector Nevyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) would go on an indefinite strike from tomorrow night following 'failure' of talks held between 13 trade unions representing them and the management, a top union office-bearer announced today.
The decision to go on strike from 10 pm shift tomorrow was taken at a meeting of the Joint Action Council of 13 trade unions including CITU, INTUC, AITUC and AIADMK union, its Convener and General Secretary of NLC Labour Progressive Federation, affiliated to DMK, S Rajavannian said.
"The JAC decided to commence the indefinite strike from tomorrow night 10 pm shift as the talks with the management have failed," he told reporters here.

The talks held here on July 17 failed to break the deadlock with the management sticking to its stand of offering only 10 per cent increase in salary while the unions demanded 24 per cent, he said.
Reacting to the decision, NLC Chairman and Managing Director B Surender Mohan termed the strike as 'illegal' saying the 'negotiations' were still on and asked the trade unions to reconsider it.
He, however, said more than 6,000 officers and engineers, who were not part of the unions, would not participate in the strike and ensure normal operation of the three thermal power plants of the NLC, which totally generate 2,490 mw per day.

"The officers and engineers will not participate in the strike. We will manage to generate power as usual," he told reporters.
The unions had earlier threatened to go on an indefinite strike from July 3 pressing for 30 per cent increase in wages but deferred it later and decided to hold talks with the management during which they have scaled down their demand to 24 per cent.
Wage revision was implemented once every five years. The last revision was in 2007 and so far NLC was delaying implementing a fresh one, Rajavannian said.