‘Rs 15,000 a month, no benefits’: Contractual ITI instructors in Punjab protest seeking higher wages, regular jobs

Navneet Singh, State Committee Member, Government ITIs Contract Employees Union, said, “No official has so far attempted to initiate talks with the protesting instructors. In protest against this indifferent attitude, we will hold a state-level protest rally on January 5 in Dhuri, the assembly constituency of the Chief Minister.”

Referring to earlier assurances, Singh said the instructors had staged a protest at Tarn Taran last month, following which Technical Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains and Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema held panel meetings with the union and assured that their demands would be addressed by December 20. “However, no action has been taken till date,” he added.

The protesting instructors said they have been working as Group B Craft Instructors in government ITIs on a contractual basis for years, without job security or service benefits, at a salary they described as grossly inadequate. “From 2009 onwards, we have been recruited as guest faculty. The starting salary was Rs 7,500 and after more than 15 years, it has increased to only Rs 15,000. We are still being called guest faculty,” Navneet Singh said.

Calling it an insult to the profession of technical education, he said ITI instructors train students in trades such as welding, plumbing and carpentry, enabling many to secure well-paying jobs in India and abroad, including Canada and Australia. “Our students are earning well, but we are struggling to survive on Rs 15,000 a month. Can anyone run a household on this salary?” he asked.

According to information shared by the union, around 1,750 regular posts are lying vacant in government ITIs across Punjab, which has over 300 government ITIs.

‘Struggling for justice’

The protesters said all contractual instructors meet the educational qualifications prescribed by the Directorate General of Training (DGT), Government of India, and that their union has been struggling for justice for the past three-and-a-half years. “During this period, several rounds of talks have been held with Technical Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, Cabinet Minister Aman Arora and other cabinet ministers, but they allege that only assurances have been given,” they added.

Warning of further escalation, the leaders said that if the government continues to ignore their demands even after the January 5 rally in Dhuri, they will be forced to gherao the residences of cabinet ministers in the coming days.