Tag: nurses protest

Delhi: 84 Nurses of City Hospital Say They Were Fired For Demanding Adherence to COVID Protocol

The Nursing Superintendent has denied the allegations and said that the hospital had been following the due process of renewing the yearly contracts of the temporary nursing staff.

New Delhi: A group of nurses at the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Centenary Hospital (HAHC) have accused their employer of wrongly “terminating” 84 of them “without any notice and without a valid reason.”

The nurses have speculated that the reason they were terminated was that they had been raising their voice against the poor management of the COVID-19 ward, and the medical staff attached to it, by the hospital.

The Nursing Superintendent (NS) of the hospital, however, said that they had only been following due process of renewing yearly contracts of temporary nursing staff, and that they had not terminated anyone.

A young nurse, who was a part of the agitation that occurred on July 13 and July 15 outside the hospital premises against the alleged termination, told The Wire that the nurses had been at loggerheads with the hospital management for over 15 days.

Accusations against the hospital 

On June 23, the nurses at HAHC penned a letter to the hospital management raising the issue of the poor condition of nurses and and accusing the hospital of various violations.

In the letter, the nursing staff at HAHC accused the hospital of denying them a COVID-19 test, and adequate quarantine facility after completing a COVID-19 duty.

“If I work in a COVID ward for seven days, I should get seven days’ quarantine facility, I can’t go back to my house where I may infect others,” a young nurse from HAHC said, on the condition of anonymity. “In my hostel, nurses who are working in the general ward live with nurses who are working in the COVID ward. How risky is that?” she said.

Also read: Delhi: More Than 2,000 Healthcare Workers Have Contracted COVID-19

In the letter, nurses at HAHC also accused the hospital of not giving them proper PPE and N95 masks. Another nurse who spoke to The Wire said that they were given 3M pollution masks instead of N95 masks and the PPE was of inferior quality and “did not properly cover [the] neck area”.

“We don’t have a proper donning and doffing area, where we can properly wear or discard our protective suits,” a nurse said.

As a result, 7-8 working staff members at the hospital have tested positive in the span of over four months since the hospital started a 219-bed COVID ward.

Surprisingly, the nurses also accused the hospital of not providing them with drinking water. According to a nurse, only 3-4 days ago, a water dispenser was installed after they protested.

“There was no water dispenser in the COVID ward since its inception. Packaged water bottles were brought for COVID-19 patients and we, nurses, were asked to buy the packaged water. On a different floor, one water dispenser is installed but how can we, who are attending COVID-19 patients, use a water dispenser that everyone else uses?” she asked.

“Finally, just 3-4 days ago, water was provided to us,” a nurse said.

Alleged termination of the nursing staff

The young nurse who spoke to The Wire said that since the nurses had accused the hospital of serious violations, the hospital management had used its power to not extend their yearly contract citing COVID-19 and have “terminated” 84 of them.

The hospital order informing staff nurses about the alleged termination was sent on July 11. The order said: “Extension in the contract of 84 staff nurses was due between Feb 2020 till July 10, 2020. These cases could not be processed due to the prevalence of COVID-19.”

Also read: Delhi: In Many Hospitals, Poor Working Conditions, Low Salaries Force Nurses to Resign

The order further states: “ The Competent Authority has approved the extension in the contractual appointment for all 84 nurses…till July 10, 2020 only. All these nurses therefore stand relieved from July 11, 2020”.

The young nurse said that none of the 84 nurses were given any notice before their alleged termination. Ideally, a one-month notice is required for terminating a contractual nurse.

“All nurses were on duty when they received a WhatsApp message about the termination. They were all terminated while on duty,” she said.

The IPNA and the UNA are two organisations who are helping staff nurses at HAHC raise their demands. The UNA has also written a letter to the chief minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal to take cognisance of the alleged termination of nurses.

Nursing Superintendent’s defence

Speaking to The Wire, the Nursing Superintendent (NS) of the HAHC has defended the hospital. “They have not been terminated. They have been, with due process, relieved by the hospital because their contract had ended. We have called all of them for fresh interviews as per our protocol”, she said.

As per the rules of contractual employment, all the 84 nurses who have been relieved by the hospital have been asked to come for fresh walk-in interviews to renew their contract, the NS said.

“We will give them fresh offer letters like we do every year. Those nurses who are below average [in their work], they will be given feedback and their contracts will not be renewed. This also we do every year. There is nothing wrong in this,” she added.

On the other accusations, the NS said that after the Delhi government asked them to increase the number of COVID-19 beds in the hospital from 30 to over 200, there were many structural changes that were required to be done. According to her, some basic changes were made, a separate donning and doffing area was provided to the nurses. However, she admitted that some additions to the area still need to be made. “Painting of the walls, setting up of lighting etc. is gradually being done,” she said.

The NS also said that after the hospital became a COVID hospital, it had to bear enormous expenses and they did whatever they could to provide their nursing staff with appropriate PPE kits and masks.

When asked why 3M pollution masks were given to the staff instead of N95 masks, she said that the 3M masks were equally good too. “I am also wearing 3M masks, they are absolutely fine,” she said. “At the double-triple rate our management purchased masks for our staff.”

Also read: COVID-19: At Delhi Hospital Where Nurse Died, Others Say They Were Made to Reuse PPE

The NS also denied that the nurses were not given proper drinking water. “There is an RO at every floor,” she said.

According to the NS, while the hospital management did not put up nurses and medics at a hotel for quarantine, they reserved a 50 bed ICU for the nursing staff. In addition, 4 private rooms have also been made available. “Before this agitation, 67 nurses were quarantined in these facilities provided by us”, she said.

The NS has said that at least 40 of the 84 nurses who were relieved have now been issued fresh contracts. But both the young nurses who spoke to The Wire speculated that these fresh contracts had been issued because of pressure from the nurses’ union.

Member of parliament and CPI leader, Binoy Viswam also penned a letter to chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on July 13, saying that if the hospital “is not able to justify their termination, they must be reinstated immediately.”

The Wire has also reached out to the doctors of the hospitals to ascertain the claims of the nurses as well as the hospital management. The story will be updated when a response is received.

Delhi: More Than 2,000 Healthcare Workers Have Tested Positive for COVID-19, Finds Report

Out of this, as many as 1,207 are doctors and nurses from nine leading Delhi hospitals designated to treat coronavirus infected patients.

New Delhi: As the fight against the spread of the coronavirus enters a critical phase, a large number of Delhi doctors, nurses, members of ward staff and other healthcare workers have tested positive for COVID-19.

With the number of patients increasing steadily, and with the government saying that it s expected to touch 5.5 lakh by the end of July, the city’s medical infrastructure is stretched.

Amidst the crisis, according to data collated by the news website News18.com, the number of healthcare workers who may have tested COVID-19 positive is not only high, but it could be much higher in the absence of a centralised mechanism for data gathering. For instance, little or no information has been made available from smaller nursing homes or clinics.

The report arrived at the figures after speaking to representatives of nurses’ unions in various hospitals, the umbrella United Nurses Association and the managing authorities of six hospitals. It also noted that the Union health ministry has thus far not provided any details on the number of healthcare workers who have tested positive.

Also read: India’s COVID-19 Tally Nears 4 Lakh, Record Spike in Cases Again

It said the 1,207 doctors and nurses who have tested positive include those working at Delhi government-run Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital (LNJP), Deep Chand Bandhu Hospital, Satyawadi Raja Harish Chandra Hospital and Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital (GTB).

While the report said “no data was available from Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital” and that no hospital-wise break-up was available, it added that several doctors and nurses from the Centre-run Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Safdarjung Hospital and Lady Hardinge Medical College have also tested positive.

The report added that when other staffers, such as lab technicians, nursing orderlies and sanitation workers are included, the total number of health care professionals who have thus far tested COVID-19 positive crosses the 2,000 mark.

It added that the data reflects on the strain on the hospitals in Delhi as they cope with a spurt in cases, that reached 53,116 on Friday with 3,137 new cases being added over the previous 24 hours.

Also read: A Nurse in PPE Fainted in a Building. What Happened Next Shouldn’t Surprise You.

On a positive note, the report pointed out that “many nurses and doctors have recovered and even resumed duty”. However, it said that with a large number of health workers testing positive, hospitals have been forced to rationalise duty hours leading to more work and fatigue for those reporting on duty. “The nurses assigned to COVID-19 ward duty also have to undergo mandatory quarantine and thus a rotational duty system has to be put in place,” it added.

The report also pointed out that the health ministry has reduced the quarantine period from two weeks to one now. An advisory issued by it on Friday said: “For doctors, nursing officers and other health workers with high risk exposure, the quarantine period shall be initially for one week only.”

Also read: AIIMS Medic Who Criticised Quality of PPE Now Faces Disciplinary Action

Referring to how the AIIMS nurses’ union recently ended its relay protest over issues of long duty hours and establishment of proper personal equipment (PPE) and how shortage of PPE and issues related to wearing them for long hours impacted the health of professionals, the report quoted one of the nurses as having said: “Our usual duty is of six hours and if you take into account time taken to wear and take off PPE, it takes more time. The duty should be of four hours. Dehydration and fatigue are some of the major issues and it is leading to a drop in our efficiency.”

At the premier health institute, as many as 645 staff members, including 141 nurses and doctors, have tested positive so far. The report also quoted D.K. Sharma, medical superintendent of AIIMS, as having said that the situation was manageable: “On any given day, the number of staffers who are in quarantine or under treatment is not more than 30, so we are able to manage with available resources thus far.”

The report also highlighted how nurses at LNJP hospital, where reports had shown bodies of COVID-19 patients lying unattended, had to protest in April to get accommodation during their quarantine period so that they did not carry the virus home. Finally, arrangements were made for their stay at Gujarat state guesthouse near Kashmere Gate and in hotels in Karol Bagh and Daryaganj.

Likewise, nurses of RML Hospital were accommodated at hotels in Karol Bagh, Mahipalpur and Nawada.

Delhi: In Many Hospitals, Poor Working Conditions, Low Salaries Force Nurses to Resign

Many are leaving the city because private hospitals are deducting salaries and fear of contracting the disease due to insufficient protective gear.

New Delhi: Facing exhaustive working hours, sub-standard protective gears, low salaries and no assurance of their safety from the government, reports suggest that several nurses employed in Delhi’s private healthcare sector have resigned.

Nurses, many of whom are from other parts of the country, are particularly worried about contracting COVID-19 amidst inadequate treatment facilities in the national capital.

Rince Joseph, the president of the United Nurses Association, a nation-wide association comprising of about 5.2 lakhs nurses, wrote to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, saying the staff is worried for their lives, according to the Indian Express.

“The staff is worried for their lives. There are no quarantine facilities and many are leaving the city. Many private hospitals are also deducting salaries. We have written several times to both the governments, state and Centre, but there has been no reply,” the letter says.

With COVID-19 cases rising sharply every day, two nurses in Delhi have died from the viral infection, while more than 800 healthcare workers have tested positive. On Thursday, the state reported a record spike of 2,877 cases, taking the total tally in the national capital past 49,000. The death toll is currently at 1,969.

Hospitals report substantial drop 

Various private hospitals in Delhi have registered a substantial drop in the number of nurses employed with them before the lockdown.

Saroj Super Speciality Hospital, a dedicated COVID-19 facility, now has only 60 nurses, down from 262 before the lockdown. In early June, the nursing staff at the hospital went on a one-day strike to demand better salaries for handling COVID-19 patients, according to the Indian Express.

On June 10, after the hospital was ordered by the Delhi government to be turned into a COVID-19-only facility, the nurses again went on a strike.

Also Read: A Nurse in PPE Fainted in a Building. What Happened Next Shouldn’t Surprise You.

The hospital reportedly promised an increase in their salaries, after which a few nurses resumed work. “Around 40 of our nurses have already resigned as their parents were worried for them. Many stopped coming during the lockdown due to the limited availability of public transportation,” Dr P.K. Bharadwaj, chief executive director of the hospital, told the Indian Express. “Last week, the nurses went on strike though some of them joined back after we promised a raise. As of now, we have 60 nurses.”

At the Sir Ganga Ram City Hospital, 40 nurses have resigned after it was declared a COVID-19 dedicated hospital. “Around 40 nurses employed with Sir Ganga Ram city hospital resigned when it became COVID-19-only. There were 110 nurses at the city hospital, and to meet the shortage, staff from the main hospital were brought in. Besides, many are under quarantine since they have been directly dealing with Covid patients. We are seeing how to fill the gap,” Dr D.S. Rana, chairman of the hospital’s board told Express.

Similarly, the Delhi Heart and Lung Institute (DHLI) is functioning with just 60% of its nurses at the moment.

Medics wearing PPE kits with COVID-19 suspected patients at AIIMS. Photo: PTI

Primus Hospital files case

Meanwhile, the Primus Super Speciality Hospital has filed an FIR against nurses who have demanded Rs 1,500 per day as COVID-19 allowance. The medical superintendent of the hospital wrote to the SDM (Chanakyapuri) claiming that the nurses had abandoned patients and their duties “with certain ulterior motive”, according to the Indian Express.

However, the nurses rejoined duty on Thursday night after the hospital’s administration assured them that their duty hours would be reduced.

Private hospitals, meanwhile, are blaming the government for the nursing staff feeling insecure. “Our staff was not even given time to be trained to handle a pandemic like this. Most of the nurses are from other states and have no social security here. They were never made to feel secure,” Dr Chandra Prakash, president of the Delhi Voluntary Hospital Forum that includes around 40 private hospitals told the Indian Express.

The Life of Labour: Focus on Child Labour After Death of Minors in Delhi Fire, HAL Signs Wage Pact

Latest news updates from the world of work.

The Life of Labour, a compilation of important labour developments from around the world, will be delivered to your inbox every week. Click here to subscribe.

Factory fire in Delhi kills at least 43, unions demand resignation of labour minister

A massive fire at a four-story factory building in the Anaj Mandi area of North Delhi claimed at least 43 lives and injured over 20 other workers on December 8.

Among the dead were mostly young workers and at least five minors. Trade unions hit the streets soon after, demanding better implementation of labour laws and safety regulations. Workers and activists marched to the office of the Delhi labour commissioner under the banner of Mazdoor Adhikar Sangharsh Abhiyan on Tuesday morning.

The All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) continued the protest by marching to the Delhi chief minister’s residence the next morning. In the evening, 11 central trade unions organised a condolence meeting at the site of the accident. 

The demands of all these groups are similar – they accuse the government and labour department officials of corruption and demand strict action against those responsible for ensuring compliance with laws and regulations. They have also demanded a compensation of Rs 50 lakhs each for the families of the deceased and Rs 20 lakhs each and free medical care for those who were injured.

The AICCTU has accused the labour minister Gopal Rai of dereliction of duty and demanded his resignation and also called for setting up of a team consisting of labour law experts, academicians, concerned government officials and trade unions “to survey the factories or industrial areas and point out the deficiencies/lapses in factories and other establishments”.

The unions have also demanded complete and effective ban on child labour. The Delhi high court has issued notices to the Centre, Delhi and Bihar governments and the Delhi police and sought their response on a PIL filed by the NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan seeking enquiry into alleged child labour. The NGO also claims that over 90% of children rescued by them from situations involving child labour in Delhi are illegal factory units like the one in Anaj Mandi. 

HAL signs wage revision pact with employees’ union two months after strike

Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) signed a wage revision pact with its employees’ union on December 10 at its corporate headquarters in Bengaluru, almost two months after its employees went on strike at nine locations across the country from October 14 to 24. HAL petitioned the Karnataka high court on October 17 to intervene and the workers returned to work after the court order.

HAL employees in Bengaluru sit on strike. Photo: Twitter/@ANI

“The management and the trade unions of the workforce signed an agreement on wage revision hike on Tuesday here, which will be retrospectively effective since January 1, 2017,” the company said in a statement to news agency IANS.

The unions were demanding a 35% hike in gross salary, the same as was given to the company’s executives, and 15% fitment benefits.

“The agreement has offered fitment benefit at 12%, perks and allowances under the cafeteria system at 25% for workmen in scale 1-10 and at 22% for workmen in special scale) of the revised basic pay besides other unspecified benefits,” IANS reported. The previous revisions were done in 2007 and 2012. 

Code on Social Security introduced in the Lok Sabha

Following the Union cabinet’s approval of the Code on Social Security, 2019 last week, labour minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar introduced it in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

The Bill seeks to universalise social security benefits for around 50 crore workers in various sectors throughout the country. The Bill also aims to provide payment of gratuity to workers hired on Fixed Term Employment contract on a pro rata basis even if the contract is for less than five years.

A labourer drinks water as another looks on, on a hot summer day at a grain market in Chandigarh, India April 19, 2016. Photo: Reuters/Ajay Verma

“The Bill proposes setting up a social security fund using corpus available under corporate social responsibility. This fund will provide welfare benefits such as pension, medical cover, and death and disablement benefits to all workers, including gig workers,” Economic Times reported.

This labour code is the first labour legislation in India to mention gig economy and platform workers. It also provides benefits to plantation workers. The bill gives employees the option to reduce their Provident Fund (PF) contribution from the current 12% to 10% if they want to increase their take home pay.

This has reportedly been done to boost consumption. However, the employer contribution has also been reduced to 10% of basic pay. The bill makes Aadhaar mandatory for all social security benefits. It also has a provision for compensation to workers in case of accidents while commuting from residence to place of work and vice versa.

Central trade unions are yet to release an official statement responding to the latest bill but are skeptical of the government’s intent as the previous drafts of the bill fell short of their expectations. The RSS-linked trade union BMS had also criticised the fourth draft of the bill. Ten other central trade unions had stopped attending consultation meetings while the bill was being drafted alleging that their suggestions were being overlooked. 

United Nurses Association march demanding payment of minimum wages

Hundreds of nurses marched from Gandhi Smriti to Delhi Secretariat in the capital on December 10 demanding implementation of the SC recommendation on minimum wages for nurses. Delhi has around 84,000 registered nurses, most of them women. They have been forced to take to the streets as private hospitals still pay them less than half of what nurses get in government hospitals. Nurses also sat on a “satyagraha” at Jantar Mantar for over a month before the march.

The Supreme Court, in 2016, had formed an expert committee and made recommendations on wages and working conditions saying that hospitals with more than 200 beds should pay nurses the same salary as government hospitals and those with less than 50 beds a minimum of Rs 20,000 for new recruits.

Members of United Nurses Association raise slogans during their march from Rajghat to Delhi Secretariat to press for implementation of Minimum Wages Act for nurses, in New Delhi. Photo: PTI

“In its order, the apex court had said, “We feel that the nurses who are working in private hospitals and nursing homes are not being treated fairly in the matter of their service conditions and pay.” It left it to the committee to look into the specifics,” a Times of India report says.

The recommendation was made on January 29, 2016. More than three years later, the Delhi high court has also directed the AAP government in Delhi to implement the SC recommendations in private hospitals. The HC order came on July 24, 2019 but the nurses claim the Kejriwal government is yet to take action in this regard.

“On July 16, 2018, Arvind Kejriwal promised thousands of nurses who had gathered at his residence that his government would do the best to implement the SC recommendation in Delhi’s private hospitals. Even after the court order, he is not even ready to meet the nurses. He also said that his government will not do any back-door setting with corporate hospitals, but now we doubt that he has done the same,” Rince Joseph, president of United Nurses Association, told The Wire.

International news: 

France erupts in protests against proposed changes to pension system

France is currently witnessing one its biggest strikes in decades over proposed changes to the public pension system. The country has 42 different pension plans across various professions and regions, and president Emmanuel Macron seeks to convert it into a single points based system.

The general retirement age in France is 62 years but these different pension systems allow some workers to retire before this age with full pension. 

More than 1,80,000 people have taken to the streets in around 30 regions of the country in over 200 protest demonstrations. Transport services and schools have come to a halt. You can read in detail about why the workers are protesting here. The protests are set to become more intense as Macron has refused to blink and has raised the retirement age to 64.

Extra reading:

Labour Law deregulation in India

What to Know About Your Rights to Unionize

Amazon, Walmart face the ire of 70 million Indian shopkeepers

Understanding India’s Sanitation Workers to Better Solve Their Problems

Why Basic Income Failed in Finland

Bullshit jobs and the yoke of managerial feudalism

Low Wages, Sexual Harassment and Unreliable Tips. This Is Life in America’s Booming Service Industry

Why India is staring at a middle-income trap

Forced to Love the Grind

The white working class is a political fiction