Govt to set up panel on tea workers’ wages

Currently, workers receive Rs 95 each on a daily basis, which is even lower than the daily wage of Rs 169 paid to workers under the NREGS in the state.

Nearly three lakh workers working in 231 tea gardens at Darjeeling, Terai and Dooars, had been clamouring to raise their daily wage to Rs 322. The state government, on the other hand, had been trying to settle on an amount of Rs 132, that too, in a phased manner in three years.

“The minister told us he was going to set up a committee in the first week of November and it would be told to submit its report in three months. He also said the government would take another three months to implement the proposals. So we hope the workers will have an increased amount of wages in six months from now,” Debjit Dutta, spokesperson for the United Tea Workers Front (UTWF), that met Ghatak on Monday, told The Indian Express.

Dutta also said he had urged the minister to convene a tripartite meeting involving the unions, the management and the labour department so that an understanding could be reached in an amicable manner.

According to the union leaders, the tea garden owners do not provide housing, medical and other facilities to the workers as opposed to the agreements signed earlier among the government, the unions and the owners.

Dutta added that the labour minister had told them that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had already written to the central government about a possible takeover of the closed tea gardens and their reopening.