INCOME TAX EMPLOYEES FEDERATION,
Manishinath Bhawan,
A/2/95, Rajouri Garden,
New Delhi 110 027
Telephone No : 2510 5324 Telefax 2513 1593
e-mail : itef@sify.com Mobile 98110 48303
Website: itef.blogspot.com.
Dated: 20th May, 2008.
Itef/40/2006
Dear Comrade,
6th CPC – department specific issues.
We send herewith the Circular No. 39/2008 issued on 17th May, 2008. The same was placed in our Website on the same day. On 12th the ITEF met the Chairman, CBDT to place before him our proposal for the implementation of the 6th CPC report in so far as it concerns with the employees of our Department. This proposal was made on the basis of the discussions we had in our Central Working Committee meeting held at New Delhi on 29th April, 2008. We were to meet the Secretary Revenue the next day on behalf of all organizations in the Department of Revenue. The COC met on 11th and 12th at New Delhi. We had to make certain changes in our proposal to accommodate the views of the other participating organizations. However, we would like to place it on record that our understanding is that the Committee of Secretaries would not go into the disturbance of the existing horizontal and vertical relativities. Perhaps the Govt. may appoint a separate committee to look into these issues later i.e. after the general recommendations are acted upon. A plain reading of the report makes it clear that the 6th CPC has not maintained the parity in pay scales in so far as Inspectors of Income tax vis a vis. The Inspectors of CBI and IB are concerned. They are silent on this aspect. However, the general recommendation to the effect that if the feeder cadre and promotion cadre have been merged with the same PB and grade Pay and if they are to be functionally separate, then those in the Pay scale of Rs. 6500-10,500 are to be placed in the Pay Band and grade pay assigned to the pre revised scale of pay of Rs. 7450-11000, is acted upon, then the pay band and grade pay to be assigned to the Inspectors would automatically be on par with the Inspectors of IB/CBI. We have brought this fact before the Revenue Secretary. The other issue on which disparity has arisen is in respect of the Pay band and grade pay assigned to the LDCs. They are to be placed on par with the pay band and grade pay of Notice Servers/Postmen. Since this is an anomaly resulted directly from the recommendation of the 6th CPC and affects large number of employees in various departments who are similarly placed we have requested the Secretary Revenue to consider this case as an anomaly to be set right before the recommendations are acted upon, like that was done at the time of 5th CPC through the Fast Track Committee. In the case of Office Superintendent our suggestion is to upgrade some of the posts as is functionally required to the level of Administrative Officers, so that the Senior employees in this cadre would automatically move into the higher grade. The full text of our suggestions in this regard has been appended to the Circle No. 39.
Meeting with the Cabinet Secretary
On 6th CPC recommendations
And National Convention of Central
Trade Union.
The Staff Side met the Cabinet Secretary and the Committee of Secretaries on 17th inst. The gist of discussion has been placed at the Confederation website: confederationhq.blogspot.com. on the very same day. We request our Circle General Secretaries as also our members to visit the Website of ITEF and Confederation frequently to have uptodate information. We enclose a copy of the Confederation's Circular letter No.7 dated 19.5.08.which provides an insight into the said discussion with the Cabinet Secretary. The Convention of the Central Trade Unions and Federations was held at New Delhi on 13th May, 2008. The Convention has adopted a declaration calling upon the workers of the country to organize a day's strike on 20th August, 2008. Confederation being a participant in the Convention has already endorsed the said decision, details of which you may find in the circular letter enclosed. We are to mobilize our employees for making the strike action successful.
JCA will meet the Chairman
On 22nd May, 2008.
The Central JCA will meet the Chairman, on 22nd May, 2008 in its quarterly formal meeting. We have sent you an SMS today which reads as under:
We require that information immediately. Kindly send the same to us either through e mail or sms.
(a) inform the amount sanctioned for Petrol allowance and medical reimbursement.
(b) status of petrol allowance in your charge.
(c) See circular 40 in itef website
Renewal Fees
On 20th April, 2008, we had sent our usual letter to all the CCITs requesting for the deduction of Renewal Fees and remittance thereof to the Fedn. CHQ. We had sent copies thereof to all our Circle General Secretaries. The remittance we have received so far on this account is a very small amount. We have today sent a reminder to all the CCITs copy of which is enclosed. Kindly ensure that the renewal fees in respect of our members are deducted from the salary by all the DDOs and the draft thereof sent to us immediately.
With greetings,
Yours fraternally,
K.K.N.Kutty,
Secretary General.
Copy of Confdn. Circular No.D.11/07 /08 Dated on 19th May.2008
Dear Comrade,
The course of negotiation on 6th CPC
Related issues.
We had placed the gist of the discussions the staff side had with the Cabinet Secretary on Pay commission related issues on 7th in the website. Hope you must have gone through the same. We are in fact disappointed over the course of the discussion at the meeting. There had been no emphasis on core issues like minimum wage, fitment formula, construction of pay bands, benefit on promotion, allowances etc. when the issues were presented , eventhough the Confederation representatives strived to seek attention on these issues. We felt that the available time ought to have been used to present these core issues, which has a universal appeal for all sections of the Central Govt. employees irrespective of the organizations in which they are working. Quite an amount of time at the meeting was spent on for projecting certain department specific anomalies. This approach made the core issues out of focus. We had been able to present forcefully the discontent and agitation in the minds of the mass of the employees over the wide level of disparity in benefit, instituted sans any logic or principle by the 6th CPC during our discussion with the Secretary, Personnel on 7th May,2008. Our programmatic approach. Which culminated in massure mobilization of employees on 16th, a day prior to the date of discussion must have created the impact, required for a serious negotiation. But the frequent shuffling of serious and sectional issues create a confused image of the theme and purport. We write this only to convey to you of the emerging situation.
We also feel that many of our affiliates are grappled with the fervour of choosing the department specific anomalies over the common issues to bring it to the centre stage of discussions at the respective organizational fora. While we are in full agreement that we should not allow the department related anomalies and relativities to linger on as happened on the last occasion, it cannot and should not gain primacy over the basic issues. We are of the view that a minimum wage less than Rs. 7400 will bring about a reduced pay packet within the next 5 years itself, a conponding impact of the suppressed Pay Bands and the non availability of the merger of DA benefit in future. No correction will also be possible in near future, as no time limit is prescribed for the next wage revision. as no DA merger or time bound pay revision is recommended by this Commission. Since there is acute disappointment and discontent over the fitment benefit even in the case of those who are placed in PB 3 it would not be difficult to make the Govt. to come round to serious negotiation, if issues are properly presented, articulated and backed up with industrial action.
The National Executive of the Confederation in its last meeting has authorized the Secretariat to chalk out such programmes of action as is required to create necessary sanctions for a meaningful discussion and negotiation. To decide upon the next course of action, the Secretariat will meet on 27th May, 2008 at New Delhi. The next programme should commence by Mid June, 2008 as the Committee of Secretaries is likely to give its recommendation to the Government by the end of June, 2008.
National Convention of Trade Unions
13th May, 2008.
The declaration adopted at the National Convention of Trade Unions on 13th May, 2008 at New Delhi has called upon the workers to organize a day’s strike on 20th August, 2008 and have drawn up the following charter of demands. The Confederation was represented at the Convention by Com. S.K Vyas, President; Com. Brighu Bhattacharya and Com. Giriraj Singh. Com. Vyas who intervened in the discussion at the Convention urged the Sponsoring Committee to include the under-mentioned demand in the charter.
“To scrap the new contributory pension scheme for Central and State Government employees and restore the existing defined benefit scheme.”
He was assured of its incorporation.
Following are the demands adopted at the convention.
Demands:
1. Take urgent steps to contain price rise through (a) universalizing the public distribution system throughout the country to cater all essential commodities at controlled price through PDS(b) ban on futures and forward trading in al essential commodities (c) reduction of tax in petrol and diesel (d) stringent action against hoarding and black marketing;
2. strict implementation of al labour laws particularly in respect of minimum wages, working hours, social security and safety and stringent action against al cases of violations, stop contractorisation and outsourcing.
3. Scope of the unorganized sector workers social security bill pending in Parliament should be expanded to cover al unorganized sector workers irrespective of BPL or APL category to ensure a national minimum social security benefit for them as per unanimous recommendation of the National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganized Sector (NCEUS) and the Parliamentary Committee on Labour with Central Govt. funding.
4. Farmers Loan waiver scheme to be extended to loans from private money lenders; nationalized banks to extend easy credit to peasants at lower interest rates
5. Lift ban on recruitment in Govt. services; remove the negative and discriminatory features in the recommendation of 6th Pay Commission and finalise the same for implementation in consultation with the employees organizations, expedite reguarlisation and grant of pension to gramin dak sevaks.
6. Expedite wage negotiation for the employees of Central PSUs including contract workers without any conditionalities.
Besides calling upon to organize organizing a day's strike, the Convention has also decided upon the following programs:
(a) Joint Conventions at States/districts/industrial centres to be completed by 15th July, 2008;
(b) Massive demonstration/mobilization/dharna in all States and Industrial centres on 30th July, 2008
(c) Serving strike notice through demonstration on 4th August, 2008
Remittance of Subscription
Current and arrears
Despite promises made on various occasions, the affiliates have not cleared the arrears of subscription due to the Confederation. We have sent details of the dues to each affiliated organization as decided upon at the last National Executive Committee. It is regretted that many have chosen to ignore the plea for remittance. Without the remittance coming in, it is difficult to manage the functioning of the CHQ. We once again request that the dues may kindly be cleared without further loss of time.
With greetings,
Yours fraternally,
K.K.N. Kutty
Secretary General.
To
All National Executive Committee members, Mmbers of the Sectt. And General Secretaries of the affiliated Associations and Federations.