Ongole Dairy staff stir enters 100th day

Ongole: The workers and employees of the Ongole Milk Producers Company Limited, who opted for the voluntary retirement scheme- 2020, completed 100 days of the protests on Thursday. They are on indefinite relay hunger strike since February 24, demanding for the clearance of the package, and arrears rightful to them immediately.

The workers and employees' representatives G Narayana Rao, G Narasaiah and others said that after the Ongole Dairy is brought to function under the AMUL Dairy, the management asked the employees to give their consent for voluntary retirement under VRS- 2020 and submit the forms from January 1 to February 28, 2021.

The company offered the total benefits for individual employees including the VRS package, IR and leave encashment, etc.. The employees whose names were listed submitted the VRS option forms to the Dairy CEO immediately.

They said that many of them are in very much requirement of the money and hence agreed to the proposal of the company. But the CEO issued orders of termination of service from February 01, without clearing the dues and benefits.

The workers demanded the dairy to pay the PRC dues from June 2, 2014 to March 31, 2015, DA dues from January 1, 2015, EPF from November 2018, pending salaries from June 2020, surrender leave dues for the last 4 years, leave encashment, increment dues, LIC, credit society dues, IR, gratuity and GIS dues along with the VRS- 2020 package immediately.

CITU leader Y Siddhaih, Ch Majumdar, G Srinivasa Rao, AIFTU leader MS Sai, Raitu Coolie Sangham leader ParitalaKoteswara Rao inaugurated the 100th-day relay hunger strike camp while the employees V Prasad, R Adisesharao, SS Prasad, MV Subbarao, J Anjaneyulu, G Venkata Rao, M Venkatarao, Basam Subbarao and Ch Rambabu and others sit on the hunger strike. They declared that they would continue the agitation until all of their issues are resolved by the government and all arrears are cleared and credited into their accounts.