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| April 7, 2002 | Sunday | Muharram 23, 1423 |
Sacked workers refuse to accept package
NAWABSHAH, April 6: A meeting between the representatives of sacked workers of the Habib Sugar Mills, (HSM) Nawabshah, and the mill management held here on Saturday remained inconclusive.
The mill management offered a special package to the sacked employees under which the workers having service of one to five years will get Rs15,000, those with six to 10 years service Rs25,000, for 11 to 15 years service Rs30,000, for 16 to 20 years service Rs40,000, for 21 to 25 years service Rs45,000 and for over 25 years service Rs50,000, coupled with other benefits, till April 15.
The general secretary of the HSM workers union, Kazi Najeeb, and other representatives of the workers, refused to accept this or any other package and insisted on the reinstatement of the sacked employees.
The sacked workers decided to postpone the proposed gherao scheduled to begin from Saturday (today) on the intervention of the EDO, revenue, Qazi Shahid Pervez, who assured them of resolving their problem after having consultation with the mill management.
However, they will continue their hunger strike unto death.
Later, the general manager of the HSM, Mohammad Yusuf, told this scribe that the mill management under compulsion had to sack the workers who were put in surplus pool on account of different issues.
He said that declining trend in sugarcane availability which continued during crushing season 2001-2002 due to shortage of water, uncertainty in sugarcane crop produce in the area and reorganization of the mill were the main reasons that led to the retrenchment.
He said that the services of permanent and temporary staff might be hired in the next crushing season as per requirements of the mill on certain terms and conditions.
He said that retrenched staff will be able to avail benefits, which ranged between Rs50,000 to 500,000 depending on length of service, with the benefits of the announced package.
About the death of an employee, he said that Aslam was suffering from malaria.
He denied that the mill management had served notices on the residents of the mill’s colony for vacating the quarters.
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