Over 500 Tamil Nadu Nurses On Contract Continue Protest Demanding Regularisation & Maternity Benefits

Nurses in Tamil Nadu are protesting for the third day, demanding regularisation of their contract-based jobs after 10 years of service.

Nurses seek benefits like maternity leave and equal pay to government employees, feeling neglected despite their pandemic efforts.

Source : Special arrangement

Chennai, Dec 20 (PTI) A large number of nurses working on consolidated pay at state government medical facilities continued their protest for the third day on Saturday across Tamil Nadu demanding regularisation of service and other benefits.

The protesters claimed they have been working on a contract for the last 10 years and could not avail any benefits, including maternity leave with pay.

"We were seen as angels during the pandemic, but now we feel neglected. Though we continue to put in great efforts in taking care of the patients, we don’t get pay and other benefits on par with government employees," a nurse said.

She and hundreds of her colleagues were constrained to agitate to seek justice, the nurse added.

Several hundreds of nurses protested throughout the night of December 19 braving the nippy weather and some brought their kids for the indefinite protest.

Over 500 nurses were detained by the police on the night of December 18 at Kilambakkam here when they staged an overnight protest demanding regularisation of service, reinstatement of about 700 nurses allegedly removed from service citing administration reasons and seeking benefits on par with nurses appointed through the TN Medical Recruitment Board.

They had initially staged a hunger strike on Sivananda Sala in Chepauk here. PTI JSP JSP KH

(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)