Members of the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), Labour Progressive Union (LTUC), and All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) staged a protest on Friday in front of the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) headquarters, demanding job security for conservancy workers and against the privatisation of solid waste management in Tondiarpet and Royapuram Zones (IV, V).
According to a press release, the conservancy workers in these two zones are currently employed through the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM). “Operations in the two zones will be handed over to private agencies, transferring workers’ roles to private control. The workers raised concerns over ambiguity in their employment status. Appointment orders were issued to 2,000 contract workers on August 1, 2025, based on Corporation Council resolutions passed on July 28, 2025. Meanwhile, another 1,000 workers are still on temporary, contract terms with the GCC and have not been given permanent status or formal appointment orders,” said AITUC in a statement.
Notably, AIADMK Councillor J. John had raised about the protests held by the LTUC and AITUC before and the issues with privatisation during the Council meeting held on June 30, 2025. In response, Deputy Mayor M. Magesh Kumaar stated that the Chennai Corporation did not wish for a protest to occur, and that the privatisation was necessary to improve solid waste management.
Published – August 01, 2025 11:52 pm IST
