TUs differ on membership rise, approach

New Delhi, Dec 27 (UNI) The sharp rise in the membership of the central trade unions during the past 10 years notwithstanding, differences persist among them on the Verification procedure, the reasons for the increase and approach towards the economic reforms.

While the BMS, country's largest TU with as much as 60 lakh membership, stressed that the increase was because of the" actual work" on the ground, the CITU said the" verification process is faulty." The AITUC attributed it to the workers' growing discontent with the government's anti-labour and anti-people economic policies.

Trade unions cutting across party affiliations have shown a sharp rise in membership during the last 10 years, a media report, quoting the survey by the Ministry of Labour and Employment has said.

The Survey is called Verification of membership of TUs; it is conducted every nine years. The Base year was 2002. Findings will be published soon. While the BMS leads with 60 lakh membership which was 30 lakh in 2002, followed by INTUC( risen to 38 lakh from 25 lakh) CPI's AITUC membeship has increased from 9 lakh to 33 lakh, the CPI(M) affiliated CITU trails with 26 lakh which was 17 lakh in the base year.

Talking to UNI, BMS Organising Secretary O P Aghi Ahi claimed that their actual work in nearly all parts of the country including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands had helped." We have the largest membership of about 15 lakh in Andhra Pradesh alone and substantial base in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajastnan and other states." The BMS work in the unorganised sector particularly in the agricultural sector, Anganwadis and beedi workers had also helped, the BMS leader said.

On the possibility of working together with the Left-oriented TUs, the BMS leader said," we don't have that good experience in this respect. While it is desirable to work in tandem with them on the local level, we have now decided not to go with them on the national level." He also disagreed with the view of a senior economist that ''Unionisation of the unorganised sector is a sign of expanding political consciousness." Instead, he claimed that" workers in this scenario are greatly demoralised." On the other hand, CITU president M K Pandhe said the membership did not "reflect" the actual picture." For such a sharp rise the verification procedure is responsible." While claimng that the CITU worked among the industrial workers, the CITU chief pointed out that the so-called rise in the membership did signal growing political consciousness among the workers, their increasing discontent with the government's economic policies and the unorganised workers getting unionised.

AITUC Secretary D L Sachdev opined that the continued violation of labour laws, government's anti-labour and anti-people economic policies had prepared the ground for such a massive rise in the membership of the TUs.

"This is also due to a section of the unorganised workers getting unionised in various sectors- the beedi, the construction and agriculture among others," Mr Sachdev said.

The countrywide anger of the workers which resulted in two strikes on December 14 and September 29 last contradicted some sociologists' view that the TUs membership was on the decline.

The AITUC leader said while it was true that the membership had slightly gone down in the organised sector because of the closures of the factories and the Voluntary Retirement Scheme( VRS), but the the unorganised sector had witnessed sharp increase in the membership.

On the priority areas before the TUs the next year, Mr Sachdev said these would include struggles for early enactment of law to provide social security to 370 million unorganised workers and improvement in their service conditions, stop violation of labour laws in general and the SEZs in particular and creation of job opportunities.

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