Posted: Tue Aug 09 2011, 03:40 hrs
Tea workers demanding wage hike has called for an indefinite strike. This even as an eight-member delegation, representing the tea gardens in Dooars and terai is arriving in Kolkata on Tuesday to hold negotiations about the wages with the labour commissioner.
While wage of Darjeeling tea plantation workers was revised ahead of the Assembly elections, those working in the tea gardens of Dooars and terai have not received any hike. There are about 212 tea gardens in Dooars and terai where about 200,000 people are employed, a majority of whom are adivasis. In Darjeeling, on the other hand, there are about 72 tea gardens.
“A situation of discrimination has been created between the hills and the plains. In the hills, the wage settlement was done just before the Assembly polls. Plantation workers in Dooars and terai were, however, left out,” said John Barla, tea workers’ union leader.
Despatch of finished tea was stopped from the tea gardens in the area, soon after the talks broke down last week and the blockade is still continuing.
The workers are demanding a minimum hike of Rs 100 from Rs 67, which they currently get. In the last week’s meeting, the talks failed as the management of the tea gardens was not willing to pay more than Rs 75 to the workers.
Meanwhile, P T Sherpa, one of the leaders of Darjeeling, terai and Dooars Tea plantation worker’s union — a frontal organisation of the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha — said that in at least 15-20 tea gardens in Dooars and terai, the work will not be affected by the strike as they have their influence in those tea gardens.
Source: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/indefinite-bandh-in-tea-gardens-of-dooars/829172/
Tea workers demanding wage hike has called for an indefinite strike. This even as an eight-member delegation, representing the tea gardens in Dooars and terai is arriving in Kolkata on Tuesday to hold negotiations about the wages with the labour commissioner.
While wage of Darjeeling tea plantation workers was revised ahead of the Assembly elections, those working in the tea gardens of Dooars and terai have not received any hike. There are about 212 tea gardens in Dooars and terai where about 200,000 people are employed, a majority of whom are adivasis. In Darjeeling, on the other hand, there are about 72 tea gardens.
“A situation of discrimination has been created between the hills and the plains. In the hills, the wage settlement was done just before the Assembly polls. Plantation workers in Dooars and terai were, however, left out,” said John Barla, tea workers’ union leader.
Despatch of finished tea was stopped from the tea gardens in the area, soon after the talks broke down last week and the blockade is still continuing.
The workers are demanding a minimum hike of Rs 100 from Rs 67, which they currently get. In the last week’s meeting, the talks failed as the management of the tea gardens was not willing to pay more than Rs 75 to the workers.
Meanwhile, P T Sherpa, one of the leaders of Darjeeling, terai and Dooars Tea plantation worker’s union — a frontal organisation of the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha — said that in at least 15-20 tea gardens in Dooars and terai, the work will not be affected by the strike as they have their influence in those tea gardens.
Source: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/indefinite-bandh-in-tea-gardens-of-dooars/829172/