The first convention of the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) Makwanpurgadhi Rural Municipality Committee was held in Dumrekuna on 9 April 2025, and elected an 11-member committee under the leadership of Dharma Timalsina.

Inaugurating the convention, the chief guest, GEFONT Bagmati Province Vice President Arjun Aryal, stated that GEFONT stands for “decent work for workers” and that achieving decent work requires guarantees of fair remuneration, sustainability, and security. He also delivered a training-oriented address on GEFONT’s initiatives and contribution-based social security schemes.

The convention, chaired by Dharma Timalsina, was attended by CPN (UML) Makwanpurgadhi Rural Municipality President Jit Bahadur Ghimire, GEFONT Makwanpur Vice President Pralhad Rai, CUPPEC Makwanpur Secretary Purna Bahadur Baral, and other distinguished guests.

The program was conducted by Secretary Kedar Pudasaini and welcomed by Sitaram Timalsina.

General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) President Binod Shrestha stated that workers have a long history of struggle for democracy, equality, and social justice. In the early days, trade unions fought for workers’ basic rights; however, movements divided along political party lines failed to pave a proper path forward.

He emphasized that the situation changed in 2007, when Nepal’s fragmented trade unions were unified under the Joint Trade Union Coordination Centre (JTUCC), successfully amplifying the collective voice of workers.

Adopting the guiding principle of “Unity in Diversity,” JTUCC has been uniting trade union efforts across Nepal, raising common labour issues for policy reform, industrial peace, and development.

President Shrestha shared these views during the South Asia Regional Meeting on the Sanitation Sector, organized by Public Services International (PSI) in Kathmandu on 9 April 2025.

He further highlighted that workers and trade unions in Nepal have been directly linked with political movements and the restoration of people's democracy. He emphesized that the trade union movement now focuses on securing workers’ rights and institutionalizing achievements through social dialogue, adding that the main goal of social dialogue is to ensure industrial peace and decent work.

The General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) held a discussion on 8 April 2025 at the GEFONT Hall regarding the celebration of International Workers’ Day 2025 (May Day).

During the discussion, GEFONT President Binod Shrestha spoke about the current political situation of Nepal and the challenges in the world of work. He emphasized that without a republic, workers’ rights cannot be secured. Therefore, he stressed the need to safeguard the achievements of Nepal’s Constitution, including the federal democratic republic, inclusive system, and social justice. He also underlined the importance of demonstrating a labour force that stands for a strong economy, social justice, and workers’ welfare during this May Day.

The discussion, which included inputs from GEFONT National Committee leaders, decided that GEFONT will celebrate May Day nationwide on 1 May 2025.

General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) General Secretary Laxman Sharma emphasized the need to bring change in the existing situation where 80% of teachers and staff, both private and public, are deprived of social security. He called for arrangements to register relief teachers, ECD teachers, staff, technical employees, locally appointed teachers and nurses, as well as teachers and staff of private schools under contribution-based social security.

Speaking at a rally organized on the fifth day of the nationwide movement by the Nepal Teachers’ Federation on 6 April 2025, General Secretary Sharma expressed GEFONT’s solidarity with the teachers’ movement and made these remarks.

Addressing the gathering, Sharma advised teacher leaders not to compromise on ensuring human rights and labour rights as provided under the fundamental rights of the Constitution while drafting the new Education Act.

He also urged the movement to create pressure for adequate investment in education quality, protection and motivation for teachers at the local level, and the introduction of an Education Act that guarantees the application of labour rights.

Jute, Textile, Garment and Carpet Workers’ Union Nepal (JTG-CWUN) organized a program in Parwanipur, Bara district on December 23 to mark the 38th foundation day of JTG-CWUN.

The program was chaired by JTG-CWUN Central President Arjun Adhikari.

GEFONT Madhesh Province President Kamlesh Jha was the chief guest.

JTG-CWUN Vice President Amar Yadav, GEFONT Madhesh Province Secretary Mukti Chaudhary, District Secretary Shyambabu Patel and other leaders participated in the program.

Rameshwor Mahato, President of JTG-CWUN Triveni Synthetics Pratisthan, welcomed the participants.
 

The employee unions, who have been protesting at Nepalgunj Medical College since December 11, have submitted a memorandum to the Minister of Health and Population of the Government of Nepal Honorable Pradeep Poudel on December 27.

They had held talks with the management on June 18, but after being unable to reach a conclusion despite repeated discussions, they went on strike after completing the legal process. Minister Poudel, while receiving the memorandum, said that he was aware of the protest here and would take the initiative to resolve it as soon as possible. Minister Poudel said that the decision taken on December 12 was a decision taken by the previous minister and that he was going to implement the decision.

Similarly, since employees working in the health sector are different from other civil servants, their service facilities should be different, that is, they should be more, and the ministry's secretary-level decisions will be implemented in all government, private, and community hospitals, Minister Poudel said, according to Ratna Giri, coordinator of the protesters’ central steering committee.

The protesting employees submitted the memorandum on the occasion of Health and Population Minister Poudel's visit to Nepalgunj to inaugurate a separate ward for the treatment of sickle cell disease patients at Bheri Hospital in Banke.

During the submission of the memorandum, a member of the negotiation team Narayan Prasad Pokharel, read out the memorandum, while the coordinator of the negotiation team Ratna Giri, and members Yama Bahadur Khadka and Anita Thapa jointly handed it over.