From long work hours that extend upto 12 hours, no concept of weekly offs, absence of benefits like the Provident Fund or the Employees State Insurance and the reluctance to pay even the mandatory minimum wages, a hearing by Minimum Wages Advisory Committee held in Kochi, brought to fore the woes faced by workers employed in the shops and establishments in the state.
The hearing was held at the Government Guest House in Ernakulam on Wednesday, October 12, to review the minimum wages in the shops and commercial establishments sector in Kerala. The Minimum Wages Act of 1948 empowers the Labour and Skills Department to revise the minimum wages every five years.
The minimum wage in the sector was last renewed in 2016, with the basic pay ranging from Rs 9,330 for grade A employees to Rs 8,280 for grade E employees. Salesmen or saleswomen in Grade B are eligible for a minimum wage of Rs 8,910. The advisory committee heard employees and employers of various shops and establishments, Labour Department officers and representatives of trade unions from the four districts of Ernakulam, Kottayam, Idukki and Alappuzha. The committee was chaired by Anathalavattom Anandan, and the members included K P Rajendran, VJ Joseph, Shoukathali and MA Abdurahman.
Representatives of various trade unions demanded that the minimum wage for the lowest grade of employees, that is, grade E should be made Rs 23,000 to Rs 24,000. Some of them stressed the need for increasing the DA rate. “Revision of the basic pay happens only once in five years. Employees will be able to tide over the difficulties of inflation and price rise only if the Dearness Allowance (DA) rate is substantially raised,” said CITU leader Krishnamoorthy.
Trade union leaders across party lines said the ground reality faced by employees of most shops and commercial establishments is grim. It is a sector that employs a large number of people. However, they lack any organisational strength and are seldom capable of addressing the shortcomings in their workplaces legally. This situation has worsened after the large influx of migrant labourers seeking employment in shops in the state.
Most shops and commercial establishments expect their employees to work for more than eight hours. “Work hours are nine to nine at many places,” a representative of the employees said. Women form a major share of employees in this sector, and are the worst affected by the unreasonable timings. Ironically, only a single woman representative, Haseena, attended the hearing on Wednesday. An INTUC office bearer, she brought issues of timing to the committee’s notice. “There is neither a concept of weekly off nor are they allowed leave during holidays. Anybody demanding a decent pay and weekly off stands the risk of losing their job,” another representative said.
Krishnamoorthy also added that Provident Fund (PF) and Employees State Insurance (ESI) is absent in most workplaces. Even where they have been established, not all employees are covered. He also noted that the minimum wages in the neighbouring states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are higher in comparison to Kerala. In Karnataka, the basic pay in minimum wages in shops and establishments ranged from Rs 15,423 to Rs 11,011 as per a notification dated December 2017. “Considerations of region and industry should inform the decision of setting minimum wages,” he reasoned.
Ashok Kumar of the INTUC told the advisory board, “Inflation and price rise does not discriminate between government and private employees; hence DA also needs to be revised.” He also said that not only should a decent minimum wage be set, but also a district monitoring committee should be established to ensure that all employees are paid at least the minimum wages.
This is a major concern in the sector. Even with timely revisions of the minimum wages, most establishments do not pay their employees according to rates set by the government. Several representatives who attended the hearing on Wednesday insisted that employers should be mandated to pay salaries only through banks. This will ensure transparency and accountability, they believed. However, the advisory committee pointed out to the audience that a government order to this effect already exists, but is not being implemented.
Strict monitoring and enforcement by the Labour Department is of utmost importance, both in ensuring minimum wages and in providing decent working conditions. TNM spoke to employees of textile shops in Kochi city. A member of the sales staff in one of Kochi’s largest textile shops, who attended the hearing, said that the minimum wages are paid and that they are allowed to sit during work hours. He was, however, wary of talking to the media. Neither did he raise any concerns at the hearing. “We were told that someone from the shop will have to attend. I was asked to come, hence here,” he said. Kerala’s Kozhikode had witnessed a historic movement demanding the right to sit by women sales staff following which won them seats in textile shops across the state. However, loose enforcement of the same continues to plague the sector.
Sreekandan, an employee of another retail textile shop in the city, said the working conditions in the sector leave much to be desired. Sales persons are not given seats at most workplaces. “The employers get to know of Labour Department inspections beforehand, so they provide seats and other facilities only during the time of the inspection,” he said. Sreekandan believes that the Labour Department needs to perform its duties of monitoring and enforcement effectively. He alleged that the officers take action only if there is a complaint now.
“Even if one has 25 years’ experience in the field, you only get paid Rs 20,000 on average. There is no extra payment for working overtime. In fact, many of us are forced to stand for 10 hours at a stretch,” Sreekandan said. He also said that things have improved for him after he joined the Kerala Shops and Establishments Employees Union eight years back. This included being able to avail leaves and getting an off-day during the week if you work on Sundays.
Watch: Moonlighting in IT industry- Why it happens and why companies are against it