Tea workers plan agitation seeking hike in minimum wage

DIBRUGARH: The Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha (ACMS), the only recognised trade union for workers across the 800-odd tea gardens in the Brahmaputra Valley, has announced a series of agitational programmes over pending arrears and demand for minimum wage for tea garden workers.
ACMS general secretary Rupesh Gowala on Tuesday said that the agitation will begin on June 1 and on that day, all garden units of ACMS will submit memoranda to their respective managements demanding immediate release of five months' of pending arrears and fixation of a minimum wage for the tea workers. The minimum wage should be fixed by the state government-constituted minimum wage board which is headed by state labour minister Pallab Lochan Das, ACMS has said.
The ACMS will also hold an hour-long dharna in all tea gardens of the state on June 17. After that, there will be a sit-in protest from 8am to 2pm across tea gardens on June 19, which will be followed by a total tea estate bandh on June 24. On June 27, tea workers will demonstrate in front of the DC, SDO and CO offices of their respective areas, Gowala added.
"It is very unfortunate that the tea garden workers are still paid a daily wage of Rs. 167 even though the government had promised to raise the wages to Rs 351. Tea workers in Kerala are paid a minimum daily wage of Rs 310. This number is Rs 263 in Karnataka and Rs 241 in Tamil Nadu. Here in Assam, they are paid a paltry amount of Rs 167. We appeal to the government to ensure fair wages to workers as per the Plantation Labour Act, 1951 and Minimum Wages Act, 1948. Moreover the workers are yet to receive their arrears for five months," Gowala said.
On September 15, 2017, the state had formed the minimum wage board, which is headed by state labour minister Pallab Lochan Das and includes representatives from the tea associations, senior state government officials and trade unions. The state government had issued a notification on July 3, 2018, implementing a hike of Rs 30 as daily interim relief, which took the daily wages of the workers from Rs 137 to 167.
The hiked daily wages were implemented with effect from August 1, 2018 and the workers are accordingly entitled for five months' of arrears which the tea garden managements have not paid till date.
Assam's tea tribe community, which constitutes around 20% (70 lakh) of the state's 3.5-crore population, has always played a decisive role in sealing electoral outcomes, both in the Lok Sabha and assembly polls. However, tea garden leaders rue the fact that political parties always try to woo the community with assurances of hike of minimum wages and other benefits, but go silent on their promises after the polls.
Assam Tea Tribe Students' Association leader Lakhindra Kurmi said, "Prior to the 2016 assembly polls, BJP leaders that they would, if voted to power, hike the minimum daily wage of tea workers to Rs 351. As a result, a large section of the tea tribe community voted for BJP. However, three years have passed since the BJP came to power in the state and nothing has changed."
He added, "No political party is serious about addressing our issues. The tea tribe community has been cheated, deprived and used for political advantage by all parties. We are only a votebank for them."