Lok Sabha Question No. 5834 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2017-04-10
Subject: Minimum Wage for Tea Garden Workers
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: PREM DAS RAI

## MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5834 TO BE ANSWERED ON 10.04.2017

## MINIMUM WAGE FOR TEA GARDEN WORKERS

## 5834. SHRI PREM DAS RAI:

Will  the  Minister  of  LABOUR  AND  EMPLOYMENT  be  pleased  to state:

- (a)whether  the  Government  is  working  on  a  law  to  introduce  a minimum wage for tea garden workers to  ensure  parity  of  wages across States;
- (b)if so, the details thereof;
- (c)whether the Government is aware of the malpractices of overtime, poor working conditions, starvation and deaths in tea gardens;
- (d)if so, the details thereof; and
- (e)the  details  of  labour  benefits  like  provident  fund,  gratuity  and insurance  paid  to  tea  garden  workers  in  the  last  three  years, State/UT-wise?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE (IC) FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SHRI BANDARU DATTATREYA)

- (a) & (b): Under  the  Minimum  Wages  Act,  1948,  the  fixation  of minimum wages for the tea garden workers, falls under the purview of State  Government  which  is  the  appropriate  Government  to  fix/revise the minimum wages.

The  wages  in  the  major  tea  growing  States  are  as  per agreement  reached  between  the  producer  associations  and  workers unions.

It may not be possible to develop uniform system for fixing essential conditions rates  of  wages  throughout  the  country  due  to  differences  in  socioeconomic and agro-climatic conditions, prices of commodities, paying capacity, productivity and local influencing the wage rate.

(c) to (e): The working conditions of the tea plantation workers are governed  and  monitored  by  the  Plantations  Labour  Act,  1951(PLA) through  the concerned  State  Governments  for  which  separate  Rules are  framed  by  them.   The  said  Act  provides  for  regulation  of  the conditions of work in tea plantations and the welfare measures for the workers  employed  in  tea  plantations.  The  Act  is  unique  in  the  fact that  it  requires  the  employers  to  provide  the  workers  with  housing, medical facilities, sickness and maternity benefits and other forms of social security measures.  There are provisions for educational facility for the children, drinking water, conservancy, canteens, crèches and recreational facilities for the benefit of the tea plantation workers and their families in and around the work places in the tea estates.

Besides PLA, number of other industrial and social security legislations  are also applicable to tea garden workers which include   Employees'  Compensation  Act,  Payment  of  Gratuity  Act, Provident Fund & Miscellaneous Provisions Act, (Assam Tea Plantation Provident  Fund,  Pension  Fund  and  Deposit  Link  Insurance  Fund Scheme Act 1955 - only for Assam), Payment of Bonus Act, Maternity Benefit Act, Payment of Wages Act, Equal Remuneration Act, Industrial  Disputes  Act,  Factories  Act  and  Industrial  Employment (Standing Order) Act, 1946. These  Acts  are  also  governed and monitored by the concerned State Governments.

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