Gazette to increase daily wage of plantation workers to Rs 1000 issued

The gazette notification mandating increase in the daily wage of plantation workers to Rs. 1000 has been issued with effect from March 5.

Following a deadlock between the plantation Trade Unions and Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) last month during negotiations of collective agreement, the matter was referred to the Wages Board with the intervention of the Ministry of Labour. A final decision was reached on February 8.

Accordingly, the Extraordinary Gazette, signed by Secretary to the Ministry of Labour D.U.K. Mapa Pathirana revised the daily wage structure as follows: minimum daily wage labour will be at Rs.900.00 and the Budgetary relief allowance Rs.100.00 making the Rs 1000 per day for the plantation workers. 

Earlier some plantation companies expressed disappointment that the government took the matter to the Wages Board to fix the basic wage while claiming that they cannot pay Rs 1000 per day to workers as they have been protesting over the last six years. 

Minister of Labour Nimal Sripala de Silva said the government will take over those plantation companies if they are not willing to pay Rs 1000 to workers. 

Plantation workers lamented that considering the current cost of living, even Rs 1000 is not enough to run their families and they are experiencing immense difficulties to make a decent livelihood in the plantations.