Shut over unpaid dues, ‘Longview’ set to reopen on Nov 11

darjeeling: The Longview Tea Garden, located near Siliguri, is all set to resume its operations on November 11 as its management on Friday agreed to clear the unpaid bonus of the workers.

The decision was taken during a meeting convened by the Additional Labour Commissioner, North Bengal Zone, between the tea garden’s management and union representatives at Smramik Bhawan, Dagapur, Siliguri.

“At the meeting, it was resolved that the garden would start operations from November 11 and the management will pay the remaining 6% bonus to all the workers and the unpaid bonus to the staff and sub-staff as per the government advisory of October 1, 2024, by November 9, 2024,” said JB Tamang, President, Hill Terai Dooars Plantation Workers Union. The tea garden located around 25 km from Siliguri has been facing unrest for a prolonged period over workers’ dues. The bonus issue further aggravated the matter with the workers sitting on a relay hunger strike. The garden, spread over an area of 500 hectares, employs 1,240 workers.

Amidst strikes, the tea garden’s management announced the suspension of work on October 15 citing that “a series of incidents and gross indiscipline on a regular basis is having a direct impact on the finances and running of the tea garden”. The matter was taken up for conciliation and a meeting was held between the management and the operating trade unions on October 23 but failed to resolve the issue.

The issue was again taken up at Friday’s meeting, during which the management and union representatives inked an agreement. However, the Himalayan Plantation Employees Union (HPEU,) which is leading the workers’ agitation, did not sign the agreement.

“We want the workers’ dues including the bonus to be paid and the garden to open. However, the management has breached 11 agreements since 2021 so it is difficult to trust them. What if they do not pay the remaining 6% bonus by November 9, 2024? Our relay hunger strike will continue. If the management pays the bonus dues... we will lift the strike,” Sumendra Tamang of HPEU told Millennium Post.

Tamang said that the government had issued an advisory in which it asked tea gardens to pay a 16% bonus. “The management of Longview had paid 10% only, had defaulted PF and Gratuity, and abandoned the garden,” he added.