HYDERABAD, April 20: The Sindh chapter of the Pakistan Wapda Employees Pegham Union on Sunday condemned the treatment being meted out to the Wapda employees and called upon the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company to change its attitude towards the workers.

Speaking at a news conference at the local press club, the provincial office-bearers of the union said that the workers were being subjected to unlawful compulsory labour.

Criticizing the CBA union, they said that it had failed to resolve the problems faced by employees, adding that the Pegham Union would submit an application to the National Industrial Relations Commission on Monday for holding a new referendum.

They said that if Wapda employees protested against excesses, they were threatened with the termination of their services under the Compulsory Retirement and Dismissal Ordinance- 2002.

Alleging that detection bills were being issued even to Wapda employees, they said that Hesco’s SDO of the Husri sub-division had imposed a fine of Rs78,000 on a Wapda employee, which amounted to over 12 months’ salary of the poor worker.

Criticizing the indiscriminate transfers of the employees, they said that an employee could now be transferred to remote places like Jacobabad, Larkana and Sukkur even on an anonymous application against him.

They also criticized the Wapda authorities for not paying proper overtime and off-day wages.

Termination of at least five employees on a daily basis had created a sense of insecurity among the workers, they said, adding that on top of all of it, Hesco employees were banned from visiting the head office.