2017-11-26 Citizens' Forum to Alumni

From: IITKCF

Date: 26 November 2017 at 07:28

Subject: Updates on mass layoff of workers at Visitors' Hostel, IIT Kanpur

Dear alumni/alumnae,

Your letters and signatures on our petition has brought smiles on 39 of the 72 workers in the Visitors’ Hostel (VH) who were laid off in August. They have been rehired! Some of the remaining 33 have also been temporarily rehired by different hostel messes. THANK YOU. However, sadly, many workers are still without jobs.

With this letter we would like to update you on the status of how VH is being managed by the new contractor, Sarovar Hotels & Resorts, as well as request your solidarity and support in helping the remaining workers who are still without jobs.

·        Sarovar replaced seasoned and experienced local workers with young and inexperienced migrant workers

·         Only after huge outcry of campus community and deterioration of quality of service Sarovar was forced to hire some of the older workers.

·         Officiating director has acknowledged that large number of complaints of poor service quality and gross violation of several labour laws related to duty-hours and amenities to workers including requirements of Inter-state Migrant Workers against Sarovar have been brought to his attention.

·         Not only the service quality has deteriorated under Sarovar, price of certain services has increased many folds. For example, the price of the laundry services has gone up to Rs 100 per clothing from Rs 10-15.

Given the above, it does not sound like improvement to us. What has been gained by this change? If things do not change, we will all experience its impact during the reunions.

In the recently concluded meeting with some faculty members, the OD (Officiating Director) has promised (similar promise was made by administration in August) that  the unemployed old VH workers will be absorbed on campus. The OD has also agreed with the idea of creating a local labor pool from which workers will be taken on any new contracts so that future such mass layoffs can be avoided.

We request you to write a simple letter to the IITK director in this context emphasizing the need to avoid mass-layoffs especially when there are no problem with workers’ performance. We have provided a sample letter below which you may change or adapt as you like. 

For additional details and documentation of VH case, please visit https://tinyurl.com/ycov6saw

Sincerely,

Alumni, Citizens Forum

https://iitkcf.appspot.com/dsogIR

Sample letter to the Director, IIT Kanpur

Sub: Mass layoff of workers at Visitors’ Hostel

Dear Officiating Director of IITK,

director@iitk.ac.in

We have learnt that due to change in the VH contract, many experienced local workers still remain unemployed and the Sarovar management may be violating several labor laws. 

We have also learnt that the Institute has promised that all unemployed workers will be hired for the upcoming Hall 13 mess and a local labor pool will be created to avoid recent VH kind of incidents. These workers have been without work for almost 3-months and are unable to provide for their families. 

We urge you to ensure that workers are hired as soon as possible. We hope that our alma-mater will not allow any violation of labor laws at VH and fulfill all promises committed to the IITK community.

Regards,

XYZ