‘No salary for healthcare workers since December 2019’: Hospital staff in Pune forced to protest

Protest by hospital staff (Photo Credits: ANI)

With 33,133 active cases of Coronavirus, coupled with 2098 fatalities, Maharashtra is the worst-affected of all states in the country. While front-line workers are working tirelessly to fight the Wuhan Coronavirus pandemic, the treatment meted out to them is heartbreaking. The staff members of the Kashibai Navale Medical College and General Hospital in Pune were forced to protest outside the hospital premises after the administration failed to clear their dues of 6 months.

Reportedly, the hospital staff have not been paid their salaries since December last year. Left with no choice, the frontline workers were forced to organise a demonstration against the hospital management. On Friday, Pune had reported 116 cases of the Chinese virus. As such, the total tally in the city has risen to 7,314. Pune now accounts for the second-highest number of Coronavirus cases, following Mumbai.

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Protests by Healthcare workers in Mumbai

Earlier, hundreds of nurses and contractual health workers had gone on a strike in Mumbai’s state-run King Edward Memorial Hospital. As per reports, the protest broke out after a contractual employee working in the Coronavirus ward died on May 24. According to reports, he was reportedly unwell and wanted leave, which he was allegedly denied. He was not provided with any sort of facility or help from the administration. His subsequent death has sparked a huge protest outside the state-run hospital. Protesting employees had demanded that his family should be compensated with a job and financial aid.

OpIndia Staff: Staff reporter at OpIndia