Labour dept urged to mediate tea garden worker bonus talks

Kolkata: The top brass of the state administration has directed the Labour department to initiate talks between the trade unions and the tea garden owners to resolve the ongoing issue of bonus negotiations. Tea garden workers’ trade unions in the Darjeeling hills are holding a 12-hour general strike after a lengthy meeting at Shramik Bhavan in Siliguri on Sunday ended without resolution.

The workers are demanding a 20 per cent bonus while the management is ready to offer only 13 per cent. The bonus for tea garden workers at Terai Dooars has been settled at 16 per cent. “The Bonus Act mandates that the tea garden workers have to be paid at least 8.33 per cent as bonus. However, in the tea gardens in the Hills, the owners have been paying workers bonus at a rate of 20 per cent for the last few years. Last year, 19 per cent was paid to the workers. This year, unpredictable weather in the Hills, with heavy rains and extreme heat, has impacted tea cultivation. In response, plantation owners remain firm on not offering more than 13 per cent. The workers are insisting upon a 20 per cent bonus.

We have been trying our best to initiate talks and several meetings have been held. We will continue our interventions and hope for a solution soon,” said Moloy Ghatak, state Labour minister.

According to Nabanna sources, the Chief Secretary on Monday morning spoke with concerned officials of the Labour department and directed them to bring both the parties to the discussion table and address the issue.

The state government wants to ensure normalcy in the Hills so that tourism is not affected in any way.