News

May Day Rally 2023

On 1st May, the construction workers of Shramik Hakk Andolan (A Trade Union) took out 2 rallies to celebrate international workers day. For past 2.5 years we (New Socialist Alternative) have been working among construction workers and last year unionised them registering a trade union named ‘Shramik Hakk Andolan‘.
Along with addressing the major issues faced by these workers (like difficulties in registering with Board of Construction Workers) we have been constantly discussing various social, ecobmical and political topics with them emphasising the need to organise working class struggle against the rotten system.
The largr participation of workers in May Day rallies was a testimony to our efforts. We organised 2 different rallies in 2 different parts of the city, one in the morning and the other in the evening. Both of them were attended by 100 odd workers each. Carrying scores of red flags and dozens of placards, workers enthusiastically participated jn the rally shouting slogans. Through our placards and leaflets (around 400) we appealed that May Day is the day of all laborers comemorating the struggle of working class. placards put forward grievences of not just construction workers but also sanitation workers, vendors and other sections of unorganjzed working class. We also made a point to reach out to fresh layers of youth workers like Gig workers, teachers on contract. The rally passed through working class areas and we appealed others to join. It was a vibrant march where at few spots workers performed lezim (A Traditional Group Dance). read more

Trade Unions

Bank Workers Intensify Their Struggle

The Indian government had been slowly privatising all the state banks in recent years. While canceling the debt of the super rich and changing various laws and regulations to aid the private banking system the government also continued to attack the workers’ conditions, wages, and union rights. This had resulted in a number of militant struggles by bank workers. Workers in Catholic Syrian Bank Limited (CSB) are also planning a number of actions in the coming month. What had taken place with CSB sheds light on the horrific situation that all bank workers are facing in general. read more

Karnataka

There is a limit to being and getting oppressed!

The anger and violence that broke out in the morning hours of 12th December at the Wistron Corp, a Taiwanese owned factory, at Narasapur 60 km Bangalore, where 10,000 workers were working mainly on a contract basis, is a result of the continued exploitation of the workers from the nearby rural areas whose land had been acquired with a promise of well-paid jobs.

It is reported that the company which is manufacturing the high-end Apple brand ‘i Phones’ and other electronic white goods, was paying very low wages to the workers at the factory, and had not raised the wages commensurate even with the woefully inadequate Minimum Wages “fixed” by the state and central governments. read more

New Socialist Alternative, Pune intervening during the General Strike.
General Strike

26th November- India’s working class flexes its muscles

India’s Working Class resolutely flexes its Strength

Despite the widespread repression under this blatantly right-wing BJP-Modi regime, the all India General Strike on 26 November by working people involving more than 250 million workers (Joint Committee of Trade Unions- JCTU have claimed the number as 300 million-plus) seems to have set the tone for the battles ahead. read more

Analysis

Draconian changes to India’s labour laws!

Labour “reforms” – India goes back in time

Given the COVID-19 situation, though not with the same enthusiasm, nevertheless the entire world celebrated workers May Day recently. Ironically, here in India in the same month of May, antithetical to the ideal of May Day the major states of India moved to destroy the hard-won gains of the working class. The states ruled by BJP have amended the labour laws heavily favouring the capitalist class. The other state governments in India are also planning to implement these draconian changes in labour laws. read more