PSU general insurers employees on strike: How much salary hike they want?

The employee unions in the government owned general insurance and reinsurance companies will be chalking out their next course of action as the government and the management has decided to offer a 12 per cent wage hike, said a union official.

"The General Insurers` (Public Sector) Association of India (GIPSA) has informed the unions that it was not possible to match the 15 per cent wage hike percentage offered to Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) employees," Girish Khurana, National Convener, Joint Forum of Trade Unions and Associations (JFTU) told IANS.

"The GIPSA has also informed the government to notify the earlier wage offer. The unions will decide on the future course of action on Thursday," Khurana added.

The companies are: The Oriental Insurance Company Limited, National Insurance Company Limited, The New India Assurance Company Limited, United India Insurance Company Limited and the General Insurance Corporation of India Ltd (GIC Re).

The unions had earlier warned the management of the five companies not to vitiate the industrial relations (IR) environment by a unilateral action.

In letter to Suchita Gupta, Chairperson GIPSA & CMD, National Insurance on September 4, Vijay Kumar Mishra, Secretary General of The National Confederation of General Insurance Officers` Associations wrote: "We hope that our GIPSA Management shall take the workforce into confidence on all such matters. Any unilateral decisions shall not be appreciable and may vitiate the IR environment."

Khurana had earlier told IANS that the unions are expecting at least parity with the wage hike given to the employees of LIC.

He had also termed the management`s proposal to have company wise wage revision as an unheard move in the government sector.

Earlier in a communication to the unions, GIPSA had said: "The wage revision will be based on the performance of each PSGIC (public sector general insurance company) and each individual within the Company."

"Wage revision of each employee to be linked with the performance of the organisation and his/her own performance," GIPSA had said.

According to GIPSA, the primary component of the wage revision will be variable (performance based). However, a small fixed component of the pay shall be towards the cost of living adjustment during each appraisal and wage revision cycle.

Be that as it may, in order to reap the goodwill of the employees, the government may even revise the offer matching that of LIC wage revision.

The four insurers are in the process of restructuring their organisation.