Labour Commissioner asks planters to pay wages 250 a day, Darjeeling MP welcomes HC's decision

SNS, SILIGURI, 4 AUGUST 2023 : Labour Commissioner of Labour Department, Amarnath Mallick has asked planters associated with Registered Tea Garden (RTG) in North Bengal to make payment of enhanced wages of Rs 250 a day to the daily rated tea plantation workers with effect from thine 2023, after the Calcutta High awn dismissed the Writ Petition tiled by a group of planters challenging the Advisory, which was issued by the Labour Department on 27 April 2023.

Labour Commissioner Mr Mallick, in a fresh memorandum issued on 3 August 2023, said:" Calcutta High Court in its judgement dated 1 August 2023 dismissed the Writ Petition (No WPA 11701) of 2023 and observed, among others, that 'the petitioner cannot be permitted to question the Advisory...' issued by the Labour Commissioner on 27 April 2023."

Notably Labour Commissioner also asked the planters to clear arrear of tea workers' wages based on the enhanced rate with effect from 1 June 2023.

"Now, in pursuance of the order of the Calcutta High Court, all tea gardens covered under he Advisory dated 27 April this year are hereby requested to make payment of enhanced wages of Rs 250 per day to the daily rated tea garden workers with effect from I June 2023 and to clear the arrears, if any, accrued by virtue of the aforesaid Advisory within 10 days from the issue to this memorandum," Labour Commissioner Mr Mallick said.

Mr Mallick has forwarded the fresh memorandum to 11 planters' organisation including its Apex body CCPA. Besides, it has been forwarded to 34 Trade Unions.

Notably, in an order Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury said:" I am of the view that the State Government should take immediate steps for finalisation of the minimum wages and the entire process should be completed preferably within a period of six months from the date of communication of the order." 

According to political observers, ahead of three tier Panchayat Polls 2023, Minister in Charge for Labour Department Moloy Ghatak held a tripartite meeting here in the second week of April 2023 and he proposed to increase wages for daily rated workers up to Rs 250 a day by adding Rs 18 to the present rate of Rs 232. 

As the Labour Department issued the Advisory on it on 27 April this year, the Trinamul Congress general secretary in national level Abhishek Banerjee, informed tea workers in a public meeting during his Jana Jowar Yatra in North Bengal. 

Political observers also claimed that the present enhanced rate of wages and Calcutta High Court's order to finalise Minimum Wages will have have a significant positive impact before the Lok Sabha Polls to be held in 2024. 

On the other hand, Darjeeling M P Raju Bista has welcomed the decision of the Calcutta High Court. 

"Despite adopting many delaying tactics, the TMC government cannot holdback the rights of the tea garden and cinchona garden workers for ever," MP Raju Bista added. 

Mr Bista also said: "Our government has passed legislations aimed at modernising the labour sector, providing better wages, living and working conditions, social security and health facilities in the form of four Labour Codes -Code on Wages; the Industrial Relations Code; the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code; and the Code on Social Security". "Though Labour being a concurrent subject, the respective state governments are entrusted with framing the rules for implementing these codes. While most of the States and Union Territories have framed required regulations under the new labour laws, the West Bengal government has failed to do so. 

This has prevented the workers from our tea gardens and cinchona gardens getting fair wages and deprived them of decent living conditions," Mr Bista said, adding, "More importantly, the Calcutta High Court had also ordered that the WB government needs to take immediate steps to finalize the Minimum Wages ‘Within the next six months. The WB government should ensure an expedited increase in the salary of the tea garden workers ‘with immediate effect, same as other sectors in West Bengal, so that the Tea Garden and Cinchona Garden workers from our Darjeeling Hills, Terai and Dooars too can live a decent life."