Trade unionists allege encroachment of office room space by labour dept staff

CHENNAI: Cutting across party lines, members of the TN trade unions are upset with State Labour Department for eating into the office space provided for trade union members at the upmarket area of T Nagar.

The Unorganised Welfare Boards in Tamil Nadu under the Labour Welfare and Skill Development department were allocated a small office space in the Labour Assistant Commissioner’s office on Usman Road.

“Two years ago, a room was allocated for the trade unions to hold their meetings. But currently, it’s occupied by the staff in the labour department and the members are left without space. There is no space or consideration given to the members who come to the office to get their pension and other benefits. They could be provided at least with few chairs” said V Sathiabalan, state secretary, Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC).

The office also serves as a hub for union members to come with several grievances from workers associated with organised and unorganised sectors.

When DT Next visited the office, it found the union members or retired pensioners sitting on the stairs, as there were no chairs or seating arrangements made for them.

“Members were given space for the sake of it, and now, it has been taken away. Officials said that a dedicated room would be given to trade union members but no action has been taken till now. The space was given to us in the initial stage with basic facilities, but we don’t even have space to sit,” said C Arumugham, Anna Thozhir Sangham Peravai (affiliated to the AIADMK).

"The space in the building is not sufficient for the staff, even to keep their files, and they occupy the space. There is a lack of basic facilities to be provided for the people who visit the office," said Bhuvaneshwari Nanjappan, President of the Tamil Nadu Congress Thozhilala Union.

When contacted, the official concerned with the labour department was hesitant to comment on the issue.