The two sides could not reach agreement as Lekh Raj Bhatta, minister for Labor and Transport Management , who led the government’s side during the talks with agitating five labor unions affiliated with different political parties, couldn’t take final decision on raising wages for jute workers as demanded by the latter.
The workers have been staging different protest programs closing down jute mills and paralyzing the normal life in the eastern Tarai for the last two weeks, demanding government-stipulated wages.
The government had fixed minimum daily wage of Rs 190 and monthly salary of Rs 4,600 for a laborer. It announced, on December 8 through Gazette, that it will fix remuneration for jute workers within two weeks once related regulation was formulated.
“We demanded with the minister (Bhatta) to announce remuneration for jute workers as fixed by the government for other sectors. But he couldn’t take final decision saying he has to consult with the prime minister and the finance minister first,” Tej Lal Karna, central member of Maoist affiliated trade union, one of the agitating trade unions, told myrepublica.com.
He said another round of dialogue is scheduled to be held on Sunday.
A joint struggle committee of the five trade unions leading the agitation, are demanding that the government fix the wages for jute mill workers immediately at par with the remuneration fixed for other sectors.
The workers are staging series of programs, including chakkajam (vehicular shutdown), along the Itahari-Biratnagar section of Koshi Highway, indefinite closure of Rani Customs in Biratnagar, and shutdown of the jute mills for indefinite period.
About 20,000 laborers are working in nine jute mills in Morang and Sunsari districts.
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