The Union Labour Ministry’s decision to appoint an expert group on fixation of minimum wages and national floor minimum wages, chaired by Director, Institute of Economic Growth Ajit Mishra, has invited criticism from its own camp.
RSS-backed trade union Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh has sent a letter to Union Labour Minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar that new panel has been set up setting aside the report and recommendations of the Satpathy committee. “Further, it is notable that the government has given the committee three years time to present its report, which sounds ridiculous as the tenure of the incumbent government is set to end, under normal circumstances, before the completion of tenure of the committee,” BMS general secretary Binoy Kumar Sinha said in the letter.
He reminded Gangwar that the Satpathy committee had submitted its report on the same matter but the Central Advisory Committee on Minimum Wages never discussed it. “How was the report/recommendations of the Satpathy committee not correct and why was the need for a new committee felt by the ministry must be clarified. If not, the ministry should consider going through that report instead of spending another three years examining something already brought in clear sight by the report,” Sinha asked.
He said the workers across the country are feeling cheated as the Centre has not been able to bring about a change in minimum wages in the last seven years and another three years for the completion of this report would mean an end of the incumbent government’s current tenure as well. “We hereby strongly object to the neglect of Satpathy committee’s report and constitution of this committee. We urge that the Satpathy committee report is sent to the Central Advisory board for discussion with the tripartite partners and minimum wages and minimum floor wages be notified at the earliest,” he said.