Chandigarh, August 11: Punjab government employees in Chandigarh and Mohali went on a four-day pen-down strike against the state's decision to reduce their mobile phone allowance and cut down the pay scale for new recruits to bring it on par with the Central pay scale.

The employees staged protests and raised slogans against the state government for its “apathetic” attitude towards their demands. Also Read | Kerala Man, His Pregnant Wife and 4-Year-Old Daughter Jump Out From Wings of Ill Fated Air India Express Plane, Escape Kozhikode Plane Crash With Minor Injuries.

Punjab and Union Territory Employees' Joint Front Convener Sukhchain Singh Khaira said the employees have also stopped work at the offices of Cabinet ministers at the Civil Secretariat and added that the pen-down strike would continue till August 14.

Khaira said employees were against the government's decisions to reduce their mobile phone allowance and cut down the pay scale for new recruits. They are also demanding release of pending dearness allowance, arrears, implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission and restoration of the old pension scheme. Also Read | Sanjay Raut Said Baseless Things About Sushant Singh Rajput's Father and Me That Are Untrue, Says Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey: Live Breaking News Headlines & Coronavirus Updates on August 11, 2020.

Khaira warned of a complete strike on August 18 across the state.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)