The employees, who were working for the HPL - operators of Khimti I hydropower project, had stopped all works in the power company, except power generation, and launched a 12-hour hunger strike beginning Dec 16 after they were sacked from their posts the previous day.[break]
The twist in the story is that these workers were not directly employed by the HPL but were recruited in the power company by Khimti Services Private Limited -- an outsourcing company established in 2001 by Marina Adhikari, wife of one of the former Norwegian general managers of the HPL, and currently owned by Ramesh Kumar Shrestha and Devendra Shah.
This company was formed by transferring 89 employees, who were working as drivers, cooks, gardeners, security guards and janitors in the HPL, which is 51 percent owned by Norwegian investors.
“We did this so that these people would not go jobless after construction of the Khimti hydropower project was complete in 2000,” an official of the HPL told Republica on condition of anonymity.
But workers, who were transferred to Khimti Services, give a different account of the story. They say they had agreed to move to Khimti Services because they were told it was a proxy of the HPL and that they would be treated as staff of the HPL.
“That´s why our primary condition at that time was we be entitled to similar benefits as enjoyed by HPL employees even after the transfer,” Ramesh Maharjan, one of the employees who was sacked, told Republica.
Initially, the HPL agreed to the workers´ condition. But soon after the transfer was complete, employees of Khimti Services were denied benefits - the most attractive being annual bonus, which is equivalent to up to 12 months of salary.
Then, around five years ago, the employees of Khimti Services launched a strike after which the management agreed to hand them bonuses equivalent to four months of salary. “But this was not enough, so we launched another protest around three years ago after which the case reached the Labor Tribunal,” Maharjan said.
The Tribunal in July last year ruled in favor of the employees and asked the HPL to share equal benefits with workers of Khimti Services.
“Since that thime, the HPL management was not happy with us, as the tribunal´s decision meant the company had to release payment that the company had denied in the last nine years, which amounts to tens of millions of rupees,” Maharjan said.
And on Dec 15, the HPL terminated its contract with Khimti Services and replaced 89 staff of the company with those recruited by G4S, another outsourcing company.
But another twist in the story is that the HPL has also signed a contract with G4S asking it to recruit the workers of Khimti Services.
Tom Kristian Larsen, general manager of the HPL, declined to comment why such decision was taken, saying that he joined the company only on Jan 1 and was still getting familiar with the issue.
Navin Kumar Pokharel, under secretary at the labor ministry told Republica: “We will try to sort out all the differences and try to come to conclusion that is acceptable to all.”
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