'Protest against atrocities'

Labour organisations, trade unions celebrate May Day

Coming under the pressure of foreign companies, the Central and State government is trying to curb the rights of the labourers and are forming rules against them.

The labourers should protest against the atrocities they face, said CITU All India Executive Committee member B Madhava at the May Day celebrations organised by CITU at Town Hall on Tuesday.

The government is delaying the process of issuing gazette notification with regard to fixing of minimum wage for beedi workers. The Central government prefers to discontinue the MGNREGS scheme than raise the minimum wage of the workers. It also supports part time job system, than giving people job security with permanent jobs, he said.

Even Karnataka government has proved they are pro-owners. They are planning to make 10 hour work schedule compulsory than the existing eight hour. All these tactics are used to suppress the labour movement, he opined.

“The capitalist culture is making the labour-class suffer. Today, there is jobless growth.

Products are manufactured in huge numbers but people do not have money to buy.

Hence, loans are given, trying to extract the maximum from the poor,” he said. The protest against Wal-Mart on September 17 in New York is one of the most important protests and will go down in history. This protest impacted 72 cities in America and 80 countries in the world. The foreign companies are scared of these kind of protests.

Hence, labourers should unite and raise their voice, he said.

May day is celebrated, since 1886 after the labourers protest held in Chicago. As many as four people gave their lives fighting for the eight hour work schedule, he said.

CITU District President J Balakrishna Shetty presided over the programme.

Prior to the formal programme, the CITU comrades organised a procession march from Jyothi circle to Town Hall. A cultual fiesta was held after the stage programme.