Pokhara: The Gandaki Medical College resumed operation on Sunday after 24 days closures due to strike by its employees demanding pay raise.

The employees of Gandaki Medical College and Teaching Hospital and Research Center agreed to call off their strike after the hospital administration promised a flat raise of Rs 1,600 to all the employees.

UCPN (Maoist) affiliated All Nepal Health Workers Association had shut down all services at the medical college since November 2 , demanding at least Rs 3,000 increase in salary. Besides, the night time overtime allowance for the employee will be increased by Rs 100.

According to Santosh Kumar Khanal , Chief Executive Officer of the medical college, all the services of hospital and the college resumed as all the employees returned to work after the agreement with the administration. Earlier, the employees had rejected the administration´s proposal of pay rise after dividing the employees in 4 categories.

Khanal further informed that the closure exacerbated the financial condition of the medial college, which is facing 6 million rupees loss per month even when it was running smoothly. The strike cost the hospital Rs 80,000 per day.

According to Baburam Ranabhat, the chairperson of agitating employees, they called off the strike after the administration agreed to turn the informal agreement to written one at the district labour office. Ranabhat also demanded that the administration revoke its decision of the suspension of some employee during the strike period.

Khanal blamed the employee for unnecessarily lengthening the strike even after the administration fulfilled most of their demands. Khanal also informed that administration had taken action aginst some of the employee by suspending them from the job after they obstructed the treatment of patients admitted in the hospital.

“We had asked clarification from the 33 staff, which obstructed hospital and patient treatment service. Only three staff nurses and two security guards have sent their clarification,” said Khanal. The 300-bed hospital remained vacant for over three weeks after all the doctors supporting other staff halted the service. Around 400 patient visit the hospital´s Out Patient Department daily. There are 450 staff working in the hospital at present.

The agitating side also warned of more stringent strike if the administration failed to implement the agreement.

source: republica,25 Nov 2012