Hundreds of textile workers in India’s Tamil Nadu state demanded the first minimum wage increase in the state in more than 12 years. Last July, the Madras High Court ordered a pay hike of up to 30 per cent for hundreds of thousands of garment workers in the state but appeals by manufacturers against the order have left workers in as dilemma, it has been reported.
As per Court ruling, workers would get their pay rise from a monthly average of 4,500 rupees to 6,500 rupees ($68 to $98). This, campaigners say is comparable to wages for textile jobs in most other states. But manufacturers in Tamil Nadu say the hike is too high, putting them at a disadvantage to competitors in other states. Apropos the 1948 Minimum Wages Act, state governments are required to increase the basic minimum wage every five years to protect workers against labour exploitation but textile manufacturers have repeatedly challenged pay rises in Tamil Nadu.
According to S Elizabeth Rani, general secretary of the Garment and Fashion Workers Union, the government must enforce the minimum wage notification at the earliest. While wages have stagnated, the cost of living has kept increasing, she lamented.
