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BENGALURU: Around 4 lakh garment workers in Karnataka have launched a protest campaign demanding minimum wages as per the current standards.
On Wednesday, they sent 2,500 postcards, all hand-written with details of the companies they work with, to chief minister Basavaraj Bommai. They plan to send another 2,500 cards in the coming weeks.
Prathiba R, president, Garments and Textile Workers Union (GATWU), told TOI: “If the government does not respond positively and issue a new order at the earliest, we will be forced to take to the streets and boycott work. No politician is concerned about the well-being of garment workers and this should not continue unaddressed.”
As reported earlier by TOI, the union had, in December, submitted a memorandum to the chief secretary’s office demanding that the government notify new rates that are in line with present standards of living.
At the time, labour minister Shivaram Hebbar had said: “Detailed discussions have been held and a final decision on the matter will be taken soon”, while labour secretary NV Prasad, who is also a member of the committee looking into wage revision said that the government will notify the revised rates once the recommendations of the panel come in.
However, there has been no notification, which Prathiba says, has forced them to write to Bommai personally. “We hope he reads the postcards and understands our plight. All we are demanding is our right to basic wages,” she said.
On Wednesday, they sent 2,500 postcards, all hand-written with details of the companies they work with, to chief minister Basavaraj Bommai. They plan to send another 2,500 cards in the coming weeks.
Prathiba R, president, Garments and Textile Workers Union (GATWU), told TOI: “If the government does not respond positively and issue a new order at the earliest, we will be forced to take to the streets and boycott work. No politician is concerned about the well-being of garment workers and this should not continue unaddressed.”
As reported earlier by TOI, the union had, in December, submitted a memorandum to the chief secretary’s office demanding that the government notify new rates that are in line with present standards of living.
At the time, labour minister Shivaram Hebbar had said: “Detailed discussions have been held and a final decision on the matter will be taken soon”, while labour secretary NV Prasad, who is also a member of the committee looking into wage revision said that the government will notify the revised rates once the recommendations of the panel come in.
However, there has been no notification, which Prathiba says, has forced them to write to Bommai personally. “We hope he reads the postcards and understands our plight. All we are demanding is our right to basic wages,” she said.
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