News Minute: Kerala: Wednesday, June 14, 2017.
The functioning
of private hospitals across Kerala could be paralysed from June 18, if the
United Nurses Association decides to go ahead with an indefinite strike
demanding minimum wages.
As many as
one lakh nurses affiliated to the association working in various private
hospitals in the state are expected to take part in the strike. The nurses say
that they are forced to go for the strike as 90% of the hospitals didn’t follow
the agreement signed in 2013 to end the protests at the time.
“At that
time, protests were isolated and at a few hospitals only. But this time, the
nurses of almost all the hospitals will take part in the strike. As per the
agreement in 2013, we were promised salary hikes and also renewal of salary in
2016. But the hospital authorities have not made any revisions till now. We
have been communicating with them since January, but they haven’t listened. We
gave the notice the other day for the strike. The government has invited us for
talks on Thursday. If that fails, we will go ahead with the decision,” state
Association president Jasminsha told The News Minute.
According to
him, at present 90% of the private hospital nurses who have graduated in
General Medicine get a salary of Rs 8750 per month whereas those who have done
BSc. Nursing get Rs 9250 per month. In response to an RTI (Right to
Information) query filed by the Association, they were told that the details of
the hospitals which don’t give minimum wages to nurses were not available.
“Either the
Association or the Labour department officials don’t have any idea on how many
hospitals don’t pay the minimum wages as stipulated by the government
notification in 2013. But as per the information that we have gathered from our
members, 80-90% of the hospitals don’t pay the wages as promised in 2013,” said
Siby Mukesh, Thiruvananthapuram district secretary of the Association.
It was in
April 2013 that the Kerala government had reached an agreement with private
sector hospitals to revise the pay structure of nurses by 25 to 35% after a
series of protests by nurses in different hospitals. The deal was signed on the
basis of recommendations of a committee set up by the government to study the
issue. The agreement was that nurses of hospitals having up to 100 beds will
get a salary hike of 35%. For those working in hospitals with a capacity of up
to 25 beds, they were entitled to get a 25% increase. “Minimum wages have to be
paid, if there are lapses on the part of any of the hospitals, we are ready to
take it up. The Labour department has been instructing the hospitals to adhere
to the agreement reached in 2013. There might be some who don’t follow that.
The issues will be discussed in the meeting to be held on Thursday,” an
official of the Labour Department said.
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