Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Labour Minister Shibu Baby John during a meeting over the Munnar strike issue at Ernakulam Guest house in Kochi. (Press Trust of India photo)
A day after
plantation workers in Kerala announced going on an indefinite strike from tomorrow to demand wage hike, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy today assured them that the state government would not take any decision which will destroy the sector.
"Government will not take any decision which will destroy the plantation sector. All issues are expected to be resolved at the Plantation Labour Committee meeting convened by the government on September 29," he told reporters at Kottayam.
"Only if everyone is positive, we can find a solution to the problems," Mr Chandy said after meeting representatives of women tea plantation workers, who had launched a nine-day agitation demanding Rs 500 as daily wages and 20 per cent bonus earlier this month.
Representatives of various trade unions, who participated in the meeting, gave the strike call after marathon talks with the Plantation Labour Committee (PLC) failed to arrive at a consensus regarding wage hike.
The plantation managements, who have previously stated that they would be unable to bear Rs 500 daily as wages, sought more time to deliberate on proposals put forth by the government on the wage hike.
The entire plantation sector, including rubber, coffee, cardamom, besides tea, is going through an unprecedented crisis and even a meagre hike in the present wage structure would further hit the industry, according to the managements.
Meanwhile, CPI state secretary Kanam Rajendran told reporters at Kozhikode that government had the responsibility to find an early solution to the issue.