Workers stage protest at Andhra Paper Ltd

Rajamahendravaram: The permanent and contract workers of B shift in Andhra Paper Limited staged a sit-in inside the mill on Tuesday afternoon in protest against the stubborn attitude of the management to sign the wage agreement even though it has been 4 years since the expiry of the wage agreement.

The old wage agreement expired on June 30, 2020. After that, the management act tyrannically by not making a wage agreement, the labour unions alleged.

A month ago, 11 registered trade unions in the mill gave a strike notice together. After that, a joint meeting of management and labour unions was held at the office of Joint Commissioner of Labour Department, Eluru. In this meeting, as per the instructions of the labour department officials and the management, 11 unions have also submitted demands related to the wage agreement jointly.

Later, the labour unions approached the labour department officials again as the management called for negotiations but stated that they could not reach a wage agreement.

The Joint Commissioner of the Labour Department advised the management to conclude a wage agreement immediately, but the management did not respond. With this, the workers went on the path of agitation, the sources said.