Team Herald
VASCO: Protesting workers of the Western India Shipyard Limited(WISL) have decided to take a call on the management proposal only after holding discussions with union leader Ajit Singh Rane.
According to the workers, two senior officials from WISL management on Wednesday evening met them and made a few offers.
The officials requested them to break the ongoing indefinite hunger strike by their leaders — Alexander Pacheco and Vishnu Naik.
The workers further claimed that the first offer was to release four-month salary as part payment, and then to settle the remaining dues by October this year.
However, they demanded that instead of four months, the management should release six months salary to the 350-odd workers.
They also demanded that instead of paying in the first week, the same should be released immediately or latest by Friday. The discussion however remained inconclusive and finally it was decided that management officials would meet the workers on Thursday.
“We thought that they would come for a second round of discussion, as our demand was to release the six months salary and that too immediately and not in the first week of September, as we needed money to prepare for the forthcoming Ganesh festival,” a union leader said.
He further said, “Presently, we have not taken any decision on the issue, as we are waiting to discuss it with our leader Ajit Singh Rane, who was in Pune when the management officials approached us with their proposal. Rane is expected to meet us late Thursday evening and only then we will take a call whether to accept the proposal or not,” he informed.
