Nagpur: Vidarbha Industries Association (VIA) has claimed that despite court directions to pay minimum wages to labourers handling heavy materials like steel bars and billets, industrial units continue to pay a much higher amount fearing pressure from workers' unions.
The wages sometimes run into as much as Rs 4 lakh a month for workers engaged in manual labour, said AK Ramani, an adviser with VIA, at a press conference here. The wages, according to VIA's calculations, at minimum wage levels, should come to Rs 500 a day or Rs 15,000 a month.
Following RTI queries on abnormally high wages paid to workers engaged at railway sidings for unloading of rakes loaded with steel, the high court has suo moto ordered a PIL into the matter in 2016.
VIA says, in August 2017, the court issued directions that the workers should be paid according to the highest rate applicable to skilled workers in Maharashtra as per the state's minimum wages act. This has to be paid for the time being, till the litigation continues
Ramani said recently workers have held protests at the state labour office against reduction of wages.
The workers come under state's Mathadi Board, which covers those engaged in physical jobs of lifting heavy material. The wages have to be deposited with the board.
According to calculations by VIA, each worker gets as much as Rs 8,600 for unloading one rake of steel, which has 58 wagons. "There is a fixed rate on tonnage basis offered by the board. The job is no longer done manually. The material is unloaded through cranes and workers only have to tie the load to a hook. The job can be done by five workers but still the board sends a team of 80-85 workers," said Ramani.
For a rake weighing 2709 tonnes, the board charges Rs 7.24 lakh for a team of 80 to 85 workers. Each one gets more than Rs 8,600 at this rate. The month's wages come to nearly Rs4 lakh, he said.
VIA has calculated the new wage which takes into account minimum wages and a team of five workers. This brings down the wages to Rs 500 day per person he says.
