A team led by the President of the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) Binod Shrestha has discussed the issue of contribution-based social security with the Chief Minister of Koshi Province Hikmat Karki.

The discussion was held on December 2 regarding the effective implementation of contribution-based social security and the effective implementation of the Labor Act.

Stating that the Koshi government is always positive for a well-organized labor market, Chief Minister Karki has committed that the provincial government will send the allocated amount for health volunteers to the district as soon as possible and list them in the fund from the local level. 

The delegation from GEFONT included local leaders including National Committee Vice-Chairperson Sita Lama, Deputy General Secretary Kamala Tamang, Secretary Krishna KC and Member Maya Bhandari.
 

The convention of Central Union of Painters, Plumbers, Electro and Construction Workers-Nepal (CUPPEC Nepal) Kageshwori Municipality held on November 30 has elected a 13-member committee under the chairmanship of Deepak Acharya.

The convention was held under the chief guestship of CUPPEC Nepal Central Vice President Yogendra Sharma.

As part of the Independent Transport Workers’ Association of Nepal (ITWAN) Lumbini Province Committee expansion campaign, a gathering held in Bhaluwang of Dang district on November 30 has formed an 11-member Bhaluwang-Pyuthan-Sitganga unit committee under the chairmanship of Ram Prasad Subedi.

The gathering, which was held under the chairmanship of Suman Raj Khanal and hosted by Thakur Prasad Gaire, Vice President of ITWAN Central Committee and Lumbini Province in-charge, was attended by Deputy General Secretary Khagendra Bahadur Wali, Advisor Coordinator Dhyan Bahadur Rai and other leaders.

 

General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) President Binod Shrestha has called on the entire working class to unite and join the movement.

He made the remarks while addressing a program organized in Thamel, Kathmandu, on November 28 to mark the 45th founding day of the Nepal Independent Hotel, Casino & Restaurant Workers’ Union, one of the founding unions affiliated with GEFONT.

He said that the workers should abandon the mentality that they do not need a union after getting facilities. Since the demands change with time in the labor movement and the form of labor exploitation also changes, there is a need to build a united movement of the workers. He emphasized that all the working class workers should unite and join their movement. He also emphasized that just as the 10 percent service fee received from the year’s struggle was taken away, other rights can also be taken away gradually. Therefore, GEFONT is going to launch a campaign for the rejuvenation of GEFONT from the 16th of December to make the workers aware of the effective implementation of labor laws, including the recovery of the 10 percent service fee.

In the program, GEFONT Bagmati Province President Ramhari Nepal, JTG-CWUN Central President Arjun Adhikari extended their best wishes on the establishment day. The program was chaired by Laxman Tiwari, welcomed by Nisha Baral, and conducted by General Secretary Kamal Ghimire.

Sudip Ghimire, son of Suresh Ghimire, a member of NIHWU (Gokarna Forest Resort Foundation), and Anshu Deula, daughter of Bibek Deula, vice-chairman of NIHWU (The Bakery Cafe Foundation), were presented with the Late Madhav Neupane Memorial Scholarship Award, while the Best Trade Union Award was presented to NIHWU (Hotel Pokhara Grande, Kaski).
 

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With the slogan “Prosperous Nepal, appeased Nepali, Social Security Rights to All”, General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) celebrated the 7th Social Security Day on November 26th by organizing various programs across the country.

In Koshi Province, the program was held in Biratnagar under the chairmanship of the state president Kishor Dhamala, and leaders including WHIN Vice President Manoj Magar and JTG-CWUN Vice President Murari Bhattarai and Secretary Sunita Shrestha were present as guests.

GEFONT National Committee member Maya Bhandari was chief guest of the program organized by the District Coordination Committee in Udayapur, chaired by Bishnurama Rai.
Rajkumar Rai initiated the program where Seema Maskey and Shashi Kumar Rai gave congratulatory speeches.

Similarly, CPN-UML central member and former minister Ekwal Mia was the chief guest of the 7th Social Security Day program held in Simara under the chairmanship of GEFONT Madhesh Province state president Kamlesh Jha.

GEFONT National Committee member Gita Bhandari, CPN-UML Madhesh Province member Sunder BK, WHIN central member Manoj Chaudhary and other leaders gave their best wishes in the program hosted by Provincial Secretary Mukti Chaudhary. The 7th Social Security Day has also been celebrated at Indu Shankar Sugar Industry located in Hariwan of Sarlahi District in Madhesh Province.

Under the chief hospitality of the Honorable Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, the program held in Kathmandu of Bagmati Province was chaired by the President of GEFONT Binod Shrestha and hosted by the General Secretary Laxman Sharma.

Similarly, lamp lighting in Bharatpur of Chitwan district and seminar on social security at Shivam Cement complex in Hetauda were organized.

Likewise, the Social Security Day program organized by the GEFONT Gandaki Province Committee was chaired by GEFONT Province President Rudra Khatri with CPN-UML central member and former GEFONT vice-chairman Chudamani Junglee as the chief guest.

Independent Transport- Workers’ Association of Nepal Gandaki Province Executive President Baburam Rana and UNITRAV Central Vice-President Tulsi Subedi delivered their best wishes at the program.
CG Foods, Gorkha Brewery, CG Cement in Nawalpur district of Gandaki Province, Surya Nepal in Tanahun district along with Syangja district also celebrated the day by organizing various programs, as informed by GEFONT Gandaki.

General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) Lumbini Province celebrated the establishment day of contribution-based social security by holding interaction programs at CG Foods in Bardiya district, Nepalgunj Medical College and Industrial Area in Banke, Nepal Hydro and Electric in Rupandehi, and lighting lamps in Manigram.

Similarly, GEFONT Karnali Province organized the 7th Social Security Day in Surkhet under the chairmanship of Provincial Secretary Shripal Sarumagar, with GEFONT National Committee Member Chandra Kumari Dhami as the chief guest. The program was conducted by Provincial Member Nim Bahadur Budha.

The seventh Social Security Day was held by Godawari Municipality under the chief guest Jit Bahadur Malla, GEFONT Far-west Province President.
The program, chaired by the Municipality Committee President Bhubaneswar Bhatta, was conducted by the Municipality Secretary Sher Bahadur Magar.
 

On 11 Mangsir 2081, the Nepal Trade Union Federation (GEFONT) celebrated the seventh Social Security Day across the country with the slogan: “Prosperous Nepal is the basis of happy Nepalis, the right of workers in all sectors to social security.”

Honorable Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, the chief guest of the meeting organized by GEFONT Central Office at the auditorium in Kathmandu, congratulated and wished all the workers at home and abroad. He said that the history of the trade union movement is older than the politics of Nepal and that GEFONT is the continuation of the Nepal Trade Union Movement established in 2003 BS.

Expressing his best wishes and congratulations to GEFONT and its workers for working as a model for the working class of Nepal by continuously working for the establishment of the Social Security Fund, Prime Minister Oli said that the contribution-based social security, which was established as a policy on Mangsir 11, 2075 BS, will now provide additional facilities to the families of workers.

While clarifying that he is working in a new way to ensure equitable distribution for prosperity in the coming year, Prime Minister Oli said that since new changes need to be brought at this time, he will give them a sense of change without passing the burden of change on to future generations. He expressed confidence that this system, which was started from the beginning of contribution-based social security on Mangsir 11 when he was the first Prime Minister, will be completely successful and move forward.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Honorable Bishnu Poudel, said that the CPN-UML has led the campaign to advance the concept of social security in Nepal, implement it practically and establish it, and said that the use of contribution-based social security has made Nepali workers excited and confident about the future.

He expressed his commitment to take the initiative to creatively develop the problems that have arisen in its implementation, as many workers are yet to be included in the scope of contribution-based social security.

He said that the Nepal Trade Union Federation (GEFONT) is not only the most powerful trade union federation in Nepal but also has a tremendous influence in the global trade union movement, and he is proud of the leadership of GEFONT.

The program’s chairman, GEFONT President Binod Shrestha, extended his heartfelt congratulations and best wishes to everyone on the occasion of Social Security Day, which was implemented on November 11, 2075 BS, as a result of the nearly 3-decade-long and continuous movement of Nepali trade unions, with the agreement of employers and workers. He thanked the Honorable Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli for starting a new era. He said that the 8th General Conference of GEFONT had set a target of connecting 2 million workers to the fund in 4 years, and 1.794 million workers have been affiliated in about two and a half years, and now GEFONT will work to continue the contribution of those workers.

Among the workers affiliated to the fund, 585 workers are currently receiving regular pensions, while the remaining three families are receiving monthly pension benefits ranging from Rs 8,000 to Rs 157,000. Chairman Shrestha stressed that since a large number of the members affiliated to the fund are foreign-employed workers, there is a problem in regular contributions, so a solution should be found soon.
GEFONT Chairman Shrestha said that for the registration of informal and self-employed workers, labor registration should be done at the local level and expressed confidence that outsourced workers working in government offices would be listed in the fund during the tenure of the Honorable Prime Minister. He stressed that the inclusion of representatives of fake trade unions in the board of the fund, ignoring the representatives of the official trade union federation, should be corrected immediately.

The program was hosted by Laxman Sharma, General Secretary of the Federation, and Balaram Adhikari, Minister for Land Management and Cooperatives, and Jyotsana Shakya, President of the FNCCI Employers’ Council, expressed their best wishes for the success of the program.

The chairmen of Phedikhola, Bansgadhi, Belbari, Bhimphedi, and Sundar Haraincha, who had registered workers from the local level and contributed to the Social Security Fund, were honored by the Honorable Prime Minister on behalf of GEFONT. The Antara group also presented a cultural program.
 

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