Tea wage ' confusion ' brews ... SOME UNIONS ACCEPT INTERIM HIKE, OTHERS DEMUR

AVIJIT SINHAAND ANIRBAN CHOUDHURY, TT, Siliguri/ Alipurduar: A new problem has cropped up for tea planters of north Bengal because of differences among unions on an interim hike in wages.

While most unions have opposed the hike of Rs 17.50 over the old daily wage rate of Rs 132.50, unions backed by Trinamul and the BJP have accepted the raise and have demanded that gardens start paying the new rate of Rs 150 per day.

" The planters ' fraternity is flummoxed due to such difference of opinion among unions. While supporters of one union are demanding disbursement of wages at the new rate, others are not ready and want wages at the earlier rate, " said Sumit Ghosh, secretary of the Terai branch of Tea Association of India ( Tai).

At a tripartite meeting on December 22 with the state, planters had agreed to assented to pay wages at the new rate of Rs 150 per day ( with the interim hike).

But members of the Joint Forum — an apex body of 24 unions — opposed the interim hike and demanded that the state fix the minimum wages right away.

" Tea workers who are supporters of unions opposing the hike denied receiving wages at the new rate. In many gardens, the managerial staff sat all day with cash to disburse the wages but workers did not accept it.

We are apprehensive that there might be a breach of peace if such situation continues in the coming weeks, " said a planter in Siliguri.

He pointed that on one hand, workers who are reluctant to accept the new rate might resort to demonstrations and accuse the management of not paying them wages.

Representatives of the Joint Forum, however, are not ready to budge from their stance.

" Workers want the revised rate effective from April 1, 2017, ( since expiry of the last wage agreement) and not from January 1, 2018. They also want immediate fixation of minimum wages, " said Ziaur Alam, convener, Joint Forum.