CITU opposes 4 labour codes

PNS|Vijayawada

Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) all-India general secretary Tapan Sen has said that as per a Supreme Court verdict given in 1992, the minimum wage should be Rs 26,000 per month for labour, based on the current prices. The Central government has agreed to pay a minimum wage of Rs 18,000 per month, which was recommended by the Sixth Pay Commission, he recalled.

CITU founder Nanduri Prasada Rao memorial seminar on ‘Labour Codes – Minimum Wages – Labour’ was held at the Makineni Basavapunnaiah Vignana Kendram (MBVK) in Vijayawada on Sunday. Tapan Sen and other trade union leaders paid tributes to Nanduri Prasada Rao by garlanding his portrait.

Later, addressing the gathering, Tapan Sen said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had been continuing his raids on the rights of labour and wages by reducing the 29 Labour Acts into four Labour Codes. Prices of essential commodities, petro products, electricity, and bus charges were also hiked, he said. “In this situation, the Central government should increase the minimum wages for labour and that should be Rs.26,000 per month,” he demanded.

“Labour wages are most important. Due to the liberalisation policies the share of the labour wages has decreased in the additional production value,” he felt. “However, the management’s profits have been increasing year by year, but the share of the labourer wages have not increased on the same line.”

He further said as per the Supreme Court orders, about 25 per cent of the minimum wage should be spent on education, health, and entertainment. But, several managements are not implementing these orders, he alleged.

Later, the seminar unanimously passed a resolution that management should be taking into consideration food, clothes, house, fuel and gas expenses, and minimum wages should be fixed. CITU president Ch Narsinga Rao, general secretary MA Gafoor, AITUC honorary president ChV Rama Rao, HMS general secretary GS Srinivasa Rao, leaders K Subbaravam and others were present.