The Participants included from Coal, Defence, Railways, Telecom, Banks, Insurance, Petroleum, Power, Steel, Iron ore mines, Bauxite, Aluminum, and Copper mines, Engineering sector, the State Government employees and Central Government employees in education health, transport and civik services etc. College and University employees, Auto, Taxi and Rickshaw pullers, Street Vendors-Hawker, Construction, Beedi, Home based sector, Domestic Workers, the scheme workers like Anganwadi, Asha, Mid-day meal, Shiksha mitra etc Small-Micro and Medium factory-Enterprise workers, Regular, or Contract and Daily, Casual wage labour workers, self employed and retirees etc. representing almost all the states of India.

The convention was jointly organised by the Central Trade Unions namely INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF, UTUC along with independent federations, associations and other unions. The speakers included Amarjeet Kaur (AITUC), Ashok Singh (INTUC), H.S. Sidhu (HMS), Tapan Sen (CITU), Shanker Saha (AIUTUC), G. Devarajan (TUCC), Sonia (SEWA), Rajeev Dimri (AICCTU), Shanmugham M.P. (LPF), and P. Premchandran (UTUC).

Those in presidium were Ramendra Kumar (AITUC), Shyam Sunder Yadav (INTUC), CA Raja Shreedhar (HMS), K. Hemalata (CITU), Ramesh Parashar (AIUTUC), G.R. Shivshankar (TUCC), Lata (SEWA), Sarabjeet Singh (AICCTU), Subburaman (LPF), and Shatrujit Singh (UTUC).

The speakers were emphatic in their emphasis that there is no other go than to intensify the struggle of the working people against the anti-workers, anti-people, anti-national policies of Modi Government. Emense damage was done to Indian economy in the first term of Modi Government with the policies of disinvesting & dismantling Public Sector Enterprises, demonetisation which had disastrous impact on micro, small, medium industry with shut down of 10 lakh industry units with 5 crore job losses.

The economy is in bad shape with various sectors showing steep slow down. The mass convention noted in its adopted declaration, “Continuing phenomenon of alarmingly increasing unemployment along with joblosses across the sectors, declining GDP rates, increasing gap between the rich and the poor- all revealing a terminal slowdown in the national economy are sought to be brushed under the carpet by fudging figures. The phenomenon of closure and shut-down of automobile industries and the ancillaries and the forecast of huge job-losses including in the IT sector is adding fuel to the fire. Price-rise of essential commodities including public transport, electricity, medicines etc is mounting miseries on daily lives of the people in general, both in urban and rural areas, leading to widening as well as deepening impoverishment. Drastic cut in Government expenditure in social sector and various welfare schemes has made the conditions of workers, particularly those in unorganized sector more precarious”.

The declaration adopted also points out to the aggressive policy of the Government against public sector. “Aggressive move for Privatization of even all the strategic PSUs and government sector through different routes, including Defense Production, Public Sector Banks and Insurance and also Railways, Public road transport, Ports, Coal, Power, Steel, Petroleum etc through disinvestment, strategic sale, outsourcing in favour of private sector, promoting 100 per cent FDI in defense, railways, coal, and many vital, strategic sectors is increasing day by day. Deliberate and vindictive weakening of Air India, BSNL, MTNL, not allowing them level playing field, is being carried on with a destructive zeal in total disregard to the human sufferings (no salaries for months together).

Plundering and looting the RBI reserves to contain budget deficit caused by tax concessions to the Corporates is going to destabilize our economy further. Defence Sector privatization move is actually designed to destroy the indigenous Research initiatives and manufacturing capability, demonstrating a betrayal of national interests. The dubious game plan to outsource more than 50 per cent products including weapons and critical equipments, being produced by the Ordinance establishments is finally followed up by move to corporatizing the Ordnance Factories to facilitate complete privatization. Complete privatization of the Railways, step by step, is going on. Operating private trains on the existing tracks built by Railways and free access of railway yards/workshops/sheds for private players is being permitted. Railway Printing Presses are being closed. Railway production units are being corporatized to facilitate privatization. Besides the railway employees becoming the worst victims, mass of the common people will suffer more owing to inevitable hike of railway fares and increase in freight charges owing to elimination of subsidies in passenger fares and freight on essential commodities”.

The convention also noted, “Now, with a greater arrogance, the same destructive economic policies targeting the democratic rights and livelihood of the mass of the people are being pursued, setting in motion further worsening of the situation. And more undemocratically than ever before – be it the passing of Wage Code Bill, introduction of Code on Occupational Health, Safety and Working Conditions, amendment to the RTI Act to cripple it, amendment to Unlawful Activities Prevention Act to make it even more draconian and vindictive, abrogation of Article 370 without consulting people of J & K, in fact by gagging them, or rendering lakhs of people homeless/stateless through the NRC process. Now many BJP ruled states have been advocating for NRC process to divide people on communal lines. This ongoing destructive process must be combated for the unity of the people”.

It will be important to recall here that the trade unions were the first organised force which started confronting Modi Government in its first term by organising National protest day all over the country in December 2014 itself leading to 2nd September 2015 National General Strike. Later on two more general strikes on 2nd September 2016, and two days strike on 8th-9th January 2019, were held and in between on 9th-10th-11th November 2017, a Mahapadav was held at Parliament followed by several sectoral actions of protests & strikes.

The AITUC had come out organising national action days in support of farmers struggle. It extended support to students, teachers, writers, artists in their struggles to challenge regressive policies of the Government as well as Government attempts to silence dissenting voices.

Hence amongst organised mass movements, the workers and their trade unions are the first on the hit list of Modi Government. It is not only that pro employer changes in labour laws and their codifications are being perused but there is assault on Trade Union Act 1926, itself. The Government design is to scuttle independent functioning of trade unions and usurp all power in the hands of executive about recognition of unions, central and state level. The Tripartism and Bipartism are all under attack.

The National Convention of Workers appealed to all the workers, irrespective of their affiliations, to join hands and co-ordinate their sectoral struggles into a mighty countrywide movement to force the government to reverse their anti-national policies. “Let us send a clear message to the powers that be, that WE ARE THE WEALTH CREATORS. The wealth that we create is being looted by the corporates in connivance with the government that has caused suppressing of effective demand and consequent economic slowdown. We demand equitable redistribution of the wealth that we create. We want National Minimum Wage of Rs.21000/- pm (as per the current Cost of Living Index), Rs.10000/-pm minimum pension for all by Government funding, we want effective Employment Guarantee Act to cover all rural and urban households, implementation of MGNREGA with increased number of days and budget allocation, increased public investment to mitigate rural distress, remunerative price as per the Swaminathan Commission recommendations for the agriculture produce with procurement facilities and loan waiver of the peasantry, we want permanency of employment in decent work, we want Worker status for all Scheme Workers as unanimously recommended by the ILC, abolition of contract system and regularisation of contract workers, equal pay and benefits for equal work and implementation of Sustainable Development Goals”.

This National Convention of Workers denounced the Communal forces which are cultivating an atmosphere of conflicts within the society on non-issues, giving an opportunity to the government to deflect the attention of the masses from core issues of unemployment, basic minimum needs to be met through decent jobs with secured future through social security measures. The convention noted that the communal divisive forces through environment of hatred & polarisation are seeking to disrupt the unity of the workers and the toiling people in general, so vital to carry forward the ongoing struggles based on their Charter of Demands. Working class must raise their strong voice of protest against these divisive forces which are threatening the very social fabric of our society and endangering the basic ethos and core values of Indian Constitution, the convention emphasised.

The Programme of Action adopted over the next three months: (1) Joint Conventions of Workers at Sectoral Level, at State Level, at District Level during two months of October and November, 2019. (2) Widest possible circulation of Declaration down to factory, establishment, institution and base level through the above activity during December, 2019. (3) Country-wide General Strike On January 8, 2020.

AITUC has to play its vital role in making the programmes to successful mobilisation to hit back the Government. March on for militant agitations. (IPA Service)