We’d fix our problems if outsiders stopped meddling: KESC CEO

KESC gave 6,500 worker­s perman­ent jobs, but union strong­ly oppose­d subseq­uent right-sizing measur­es.


Irfan Aligi May 18, 2011

KARACHI:


A conciliatory mood prevailed for the most part at a press conference by Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) CEO Tabish Gauhar, who said that the protesting union workers needed to sit down with the management to solve their problems amicably.


“KESC does not need a third party to arbitrate and try to resolve our issues with the union,” said Gauhar at KESC House on Wednesday. “The KESC HR committee and the CBA will find a way out soon.”

The workers and KESC have been at loggerheads since January when several thousand of them were asked to leave after refusing to take a golden handshake. The protests gained steam recently with violence breaking out.

KESC has already conveyed to the trade union leaders that the company does not need any more non-core workers, said Gauhar, adding that the company is willing to keep them on the job but they should not come to work. Their salaries will be delivered at home but no other perks and overtime would be paid.

It is the company’s mission to cleanse itself from inside out and make it a pro-consumer state of the art public utility, he said.

Unfortunately, politicians and people in the government have been supporting the trade union leaders who have been on a hunger strike. Political interference in KESC’s internal affairs is creating chaos, he said.

Certain politicians and people in the government aren’t happy with the company’s top slot because they have refused to entertain any illegal demands. The impact on the situation is self-explanatory, he added.

As a result of an agreement with the CBA, the company had given permanent jobs to 6,500 workers but when the company wants to improve corporate responsibility by right-sizing its strength, it faces strong opposition.

KESC has time and again requested the government to make the privatisation document (accord) public because the company is bound to abide by its terms and conditions. It won’t leak the details unless both signatories mutually agree to it.

He said that consumers are not concerned with what is happening inside the utility but they want an uninterrupted supply of electricity, a reasonable electricity tariff and standard consumer service from the company. KESC has invested US$600 million in the company and has added 400 megawatts to the system. Eight new grid stations, 250 feeders and above 1,000 pole-mounted transformers (PMT) have been added in the city.

The problem of rolling blackouts or load shedding will never cease to exist unless electricity theft is completely ended, bills are paid on time and the fuel supply is not interrupted. He said that the company believes that an increase in the electricity tariff is not in its favour because its impact is devastating for the consumers of the low-income profile.

Curtailing the gas supply forces the company to switch to furnace oil, which again raises the electricity tariff. The government should make the gas supply to the company a priority so that the electricity tariff is kept low or else the government should offer poor customers a subsidy, he demanded. The company is pursuing a plan to import gas in order to be self-reliant and to hopefully bring load shedding down to its lowest level.

Gauhar agreed that the company had many weaknesses but added that they have been inherited.

He asked staff to go back to work and let the newly constituted HR committee and the CBA decide what is good and bad for the company and the people of the city. Going on a hunger strike and staging a protest is the people’s democratic right but it is in the best interest of both stakeholders to sit down together to resolve the issue diligently and not on the street. No civilised society honours dialogue with aggressors so any effort to paralyse KESC would be defeated, he said.

The people who do not miss out on an opportunity to criticise KESC should look at PIA, Pakistan Steel and other national institutions as they need more attention.

Later on, the head of KESC’s newly formed HR committee Asif Hafeez briefed journalists on the salary packages and perks of CBA representatives. For example, a driver’s salary in KESC is Rs66,983, which is 636 per cent higher than that of drivers taken from an outsourced system. A peon draws Rs24,000 while those from the outsourced system are available for only Rs8,000.

The CBA has rejected the voluntary separation scheme (VSS) because of their vested interests. He said that the kith and kin and close relatives are also in the company’s service.


Labour pains


Designation                          Salary of          Outsourcing

employee                 cost

MT Driver                               Rs66,983             Rs9,104

Foreman Electrical                Rs46,806             Rs14,500

Office Attendant (peon)        Rs24,020             Rs8,950

Officer Superintendent         Rs 73,656            Rs13,580

Asst Officer Superintendent                             Rs71,543    Rs13,580

source: kesc

Published in The Express Tribune, May 19th, 2011.

COMMENTS (26)

Shahdab | 12 years ago | Reply KESC's management is right. They didnt expeled anyone from the copmpany but created a pool for surplus staff. More Importantly, the management didn't stop the salary of any union worker. Court has also given the order that Union strike is illegal - The issue could have been resolved but now the issue has been politicised. Red flag party is backing Union while london party is supporting management. Finally - Allah Reham Kare is mulk per or KESC per.
meekal ahmed | 12 years ago | Reply This is a private copany and should operate like one. There should be no interference from the government or from London.
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