Esma may be invoked against IOC workers

MALAPPURAM: The Malappuram district administration may invoke Essential Services Maintenance Act (Esma) against the striking contract labourers at the Indian Oil Corporation's (IOC) LPG bottling plant at Chelari in the district.
The indefinite strike launched by cylinder handling and housekeeping workers at the plant on Monday created a fresh crisis in the LPG distribution across Malabar, stopping movement of cylinders completely.Contract labourers have launched the strike demanding a hike in wages.
The meeting called by district collector K Biju with the representatives of employees' union at the plant on Tuesday, failed as the unions refused the conditions put forward by the labour contractor. Though the contractor was willing to implement the wage hike as per a decision taken at meeting held on March 13, employees' unions demanded the hike be implemented with effect from January 16, 2013.
As per the agreement, each contract labourer under the category 1, will get Rs 13,000 plus incentives for each month and labourers under Category 2 will get Rs 12,500 plus incentive.
At the discussion, the collector informed representatives of the employees' unions that the wage system would be revised after the completion of the term of the existing contractor in January, but the unions were not ready to agree to the demand.
Since loading and unloading workers at the plant launched a 'Go-Slow' strike on June 12, there is already a shortage of about 50,000 cooking gas cylinders in Malabar districts. The indefinite strike would now deal a blow to nearly 1 lakh LPG customers.
The collector said that as LPG distribution falls under the category of essential services, the district administration will be forced to invoke Esma against the striking workers, as the cooking gas shortage could severely cripple a large number of people in Malabar.
The strike has chiefly affected LPG distribution in Kannur, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Palakkad and Malappuram districts.