Madras HC orders equal pay for equal work to contract nurses

CHENNAI: Even after six years of struggle, 7,243 nurses employed by the Medical Recruitment Board on contract basis and working in the Tamil Nadu government hospitals and primary heallth centers are yet to be made permanent.

Since 2015, nurses have been employed and the appointment order was issued that the job will be made permanent within two years of joining the service. On November 27, 2017, they staged a three-day strike on behalf of the Tamil Nadu MRB Nurses Empowerment Association demanding permanent employment.

Regarding the same, a Public Interest Litigation in the Madras High Court. Chief Justice Indira Banerjee, who heard the case, had issued an interim order banning the protest and ordered that the government should negotiate on the demands of the nurses.

Subsequently, in the final judgment of the case, it was ordered on 11 June, 2018 that the work of contract nurses should be compared with that of permanent nurses and equal wages should be paid to the contract nurses doing equal work within six months.

However, the government did not implement that decision and the association filed a contempt of court case against then health secretary, Beela Rajesh IAS for not complying with the order and she was ordered to appear in person on November 1, 2022.

The case was re-heard on November 21, 2022 and the health secretary should file a affidavit on 15 December, 2022 for contempt of court and from December 1, 2022 the nature of work of each contract nurse should be compared with that of permanent nurses. The court also ordered to pay equal pay to nurses and to file action taken report in court on January 4, 2023.