Respite From Summer Heat: GHMC relaxes working hrs for sanitation staff

Hyderabad: After the outsourcing sanitation workers staged a protest at the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) urging authorities to fulfil their demands, the civic body accepted a few demands on Tuesday. It decided to give relaxation in timings of all sanitation workers in view of summer heat and also agreed to bring changes in the bio-metric attendance system.

This decision came after several employees' unions of the GHMC gave many representations to authorities and sanitation workers also staged protests.

The GHMC circular stated that in view of the workers' health and difficulties in discharging duties during summer the time relaxation was being given for attending duties instead of regular timings from 5 am to 1 pm. The new timings will be in force till the end of summer.

It said changes will be made in bio-metric attendance recording the workers in time between 5 am and 6 am; out time will be between 12 and 1 pm till the end of summer. The concerned officials have been asked to take necessary action in this regard with immediate effect. They were also asked to submit a report.

The union members said only two demands have been met. The major demands of increasing the minimum wage and regularisation remain unfulfilled. Many sanitation workers have been working on outsourcing basis for several years, said a union member.