New Delhi, Nov. 3 -- In the sprawling lanes of Jawaharlal Nehru University, where grand debates on democracy and social justice echo daily, those who keep the institution running are standing outside its gates. On Tuesday, hundreds of contract workers sanitation staff, mess attendants, security guards, horticulturists, and maintenance workers launched a strike against systemic labour rights violations, illegal wage deductions, and unfulfilled statutory bonuses.
While sanitation workers withdrew their labour entirely, mess staff reported to duty wearing black armbands a subtle yet striking symbol of silent protest designed to minimise disruption for students while highlighting their own distress. Behind the campus gates, the grievances are long-standing. According to the All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU), over 500 workers face severe hardships. Despite clear directions issued by the Assistant Labour Commissioner (ALC) in late September instructing university management to halt arbitrary retrenchments, issue salary slips and identity cards, constitute a functioning Grievance Redressal Committee, and audit missing statutory bonuses the workers allege that compliance remains non-existent. Female workers face denied maternity benefits under the current administration, while statutory rights to earned leave (EL), casual leave (CL), and equal pay for equal work remain unheeded.
In a poignant direct appeal to the student community, the workers laid bare the human cost of these administrative failures. Addressing the students as family, they explained that severe staff shortages have left single individuals carrying the workload of ten, directly impacting campus sanitation and food quality.
"Each Diwali, we tremble with grief when we see the emptiness in our children's eyes," the workers wrote in an emotional open letter. "We work at one-fourth the wage of permanent workers despite performing the same tasks... If you all are JNU, we too can proudly say that WE ARE JNU TOO."
As workers gather at Sabarmati T-Point, they have called upon the JNU Teachers' Association (JNUTA) and the broader student body for active solidarity. The strike serves as a stark reminder that a university committed to academic freedom cannot remain indifferent to the basic dignity of its foundational workforce.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.