Recommendations on Welfare of Tea Plantations Labour
National
Advisory Council
Recommendations
on Welfare of Tea Plantations Labour
Background
1. The Plantations Labour Act (PLA), 1951 provides the legal
definition of Plantations. The Act states that a Plantations is any land used
or intended to be used for growing tea, coffee, rubber, cinchona, cocoa, oil
palm and cardamom which measures 5 hectares or more and in which 15 or more
persons are employed or were employed on any day of the preceding 12 months.
2. Tea is the major Plantations industry in India. It is the
oldest in the organized manufacturing sector and has retained its position as
the single largest employer in this sector. Tea is produced mainly in four
States, namely, Assam, West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The total number of
permanent workers in tea estates is about 1 million and the number of temporary
workers is around 6 lakhs. Ironically, even though they are a part of the
organized sector, Plantations workers remain even today one of the most
marginalized sections of the society.
3. Wages of tea Plantations workers are the lowest in the
organized/ formal sector. The process and rationale for wage fixation does not
appear to be satisfactory. The decision of the Wage Commission for Tea
Plantations Industry in 1966 to take 1.5 units of consumption to determine the
need based minimum wage instead of 3 units of consumption as agreed upon in the
15th Indian Labour Conference (1957) has resulted in such low wages. For
example, the total daily wage of a tea Plantations worker in West Bengal is
around Rs. 140 which includes the component of food grains at a subsidy. This
is lower than the stipulated wage in the unorganized sector. The wages are
agreed upon in different States by a Tripartite Committee set up by the State
Governments comprising of the Worker Unions, representatives of the employers
and the State Government. Wage negotiations are on the basis of the existing
wages whereas negotiations should be after taking into account the existing
need based minimum wage.
4. Low bargaining power of tea Plantations workers. The low
wages of tea Plantations workers are due to a number of causes which include
isolation of the tea Plantations, extreme backwardness of the areas surrounding
the Plantations that do not provide any alternative
employment, lack of educational facilities among others.
These factors reduce the workers’ bargaining power for better wages. When
workers demand a just increase in wages, the employers retaliate by saying that
they would have to cut down on temporary workers. Since the temporary workers
are from the families of permanent workers, any reduction will reduce the family
income. The workers are thus caught in a vicious circle of working for low
wages in Plantations work.
5. Lack of quality school education and little impact of the
RTE Act. Poverty and limited income restricts the workers from providing their
children adequately with their basic needs and education. The teacher student
ratio is very low. Medium of instruction completely differs from their mother
tongue. There are no proper school buildings and other infrastructure. Despite
the enactment of the Right to Education Act, the impact of this legislation is
scarcely felt in most of the Plantations areas. High schools and other
facilities for higher education are located at far distance from tea gardens.
6. Poor penetration of Government’s welfare programmes.
Welfare facilities like housing, sanitation, health and hygiene available to
the Plantations labour are also not satisfactory. Various Government of India
schemes which have the potential of being dovetailed into the tea sector are
also generally not extended to the Plantations labour. As a result, the Plantations
labour is deprived of even those facilities which are available to an ordinary
citizen of the country. Anaemia, worm infection, skin problems, TB and
respiratory infections are very common health problems seen in Plantations
labours.Institutions, Governance and Delivery Mechanisms Tea Board of India
7. The Tea Board of India was established under Tea Act,
1953 as a regulatory body in pursuance of the International Agreement on Tea
towards cultivation and export of tea. With respect to labour welfare, the
Board has a specific provision for improvement of amenities and providing
incentives for workers. Under its mandate, it also has a scope for improving
the working conditions of Plantations labour. With respect to infrastructural
development, the board provides rooms
for development and extension of hospitals, health centres, UNICEF model of toilets
and supply of water filter.
Structure for Enforcement and Accountability
8. Plantations Labour Act, 1951 and the Plantations Labour
Rules of respective state governments in particular are being implemented
through enforcement machinery that operates from Regional Labour Officers
situated in tea growing areas. Assistant Labour Commissioners are the
Plantations Inspectors under the PLA. There is no separate machinery for implementation
of PLA, 1951. There are serious concerns about the enforcement of the PLA, 1951
especially with respect to manpower deficiency and infrastructural hindrances
in accessing the far flung tea growing areas. The Labour Welfare Boards exist
in the state for the purpose of promoting welfare activities for workers in
various industries and tea garden areas.
9. The following legislations are applicable to the tea
Plantations workers:
i. Plantations Labour Act, 1951
ii. Workers Compensation Act, 1923
iii. The Payment of Wages Act, 1936
iv. The Industrial Dispute Act, 1947
v. The Factories Act, 1948
vi. The Minimum Wages Act, 1948
vii. Provident Fund Act
viii. Maternity Benefit Act
ix. Other Social Welfare Legislations
10. Shortly after the NAC took up the subject on its agenda
and initiated its consultative process,
an Inter-Ministerial Group has been constituted in December, 2013 by the
Ministry of Labour & Employment with Labour Secretary as the Chair to look
into the issues concerning Plantations labour. It is suggested that the
following recommendations of the NAC be considered by the Inter- Ministerial
Committee with regard to welfare of the tea Plantations labour.
Recommendations
11. In the light of the discussion in the foregoing sections
there is a need to revisit the Plantations Labour Act 1951 and various welfare
provisions of Plantations workers in India. The issues that need to be
addressed are low wages, ensuring decent working condition, provisioning basic
amenities and better enforcement of the legislation through involvement of local
administration, local self governments and NGOs. To address these concerns, the
following recommendations are made.
Recommendation 1
– Plantations Labour Act, 1951
Review existing
provisions under the Plantations Labour Act, 1951 to make it relevant to present
context. The review exercise should take into account, developments in the tea sector,
social legislations enacted for labor welfare as well as new welfare programs
and outreach.
12. The Plantations Labour Act, 1951 provides for the
welfare of Plantations labour and regulates
the conditions of work in Plantations. It has been enacted by the Central
Government but administered by the State
Governments through rules framed by them based on a model provided by the Union
government. It is unique in the fact that while the Indian labour legislation
in general restricts itself to wages and working conditions at the place of
work, the PLA is the only Act that seeks to raise the living standards of
Plantations workers. The small tea growers sector being an unorganized sector
is not governed by it. There is a need to see that social security benefits are
extended to labour working on small Plantations.
13. The implementation of the provisions of the Act has not
lead either to the empowerment of the workers or to the structural
transformation of the colonial Plantations. The PLA has its constraints in the
articulation of the rights, definition of Plantations, definition of worker and
its failure to break the isolation of labour within Plantations, the highly
restrictive logic of determination of wages and in the limited valuation of
women's labour. This points to the fact that the PLA in its present form
contributes to institutional exclusion.
14. The most vociferous argument on the part of the
management has been that the observance of the provisions of the PLA increases
the cost of production of tea; making the industry inefficient. The industry
has repeatedly pointed out that these provisions were initiated in early years
when employment in remote areas was difficult because of inadequate facilities.
1951 PLA, which was enacted to make it incumbent on tea estate managements to
provide a wide range of welfare facilities still exist, directly impacting the
cost of tea production. Although the Plantations Labour Act, 1951 requires the
management of a tea garden to provide basic services for its workers and their
families, its provisions apply only to permanent workers. Approximately half of
the tea garden labour force is made up of ‘temporary’ or ‘seasonal’ or ‘casual’
workers, Thus they do not benefit from these services, which include health and
hospital services, crèches, primary education, water and sanitation, housing
and rations for workers and
their dependents. This makes their condition even more
vulnerable.4
15. The review of the PLA 1951 needs to look afresh at the
definitions of Plantations, workers, in the light of changing nature of tea
production systems, .i.e. the emergence of the small tea grower sector which
currently is outside the purview of the Law and whose numbers are increasing.
Simultaneously, the nature of Plantations workers is also undergoing a
transition. More and more casual and seasonal workers are being employed by tea
Plantations, who are excluded from the welfare benefits provided in the PLA,
1951. There is need to see how rights and benefits could be extended to this
class of workers. Moreover, there are today several Rights-based legislations
enacted over the past decade as well as flagship programmes implemented by the
Central Government which entitles all citizens of the country to food security,
basic education, health services and insurance , housing, sanitation, social
security and pension, etc. A situation cannot be allowed to prevail where
workers in isolated enclaves such as tea Plantations, remain bereft of the
universal entitlements conferred by the Rights-based legislations and welfare
policies as well as flagship programmes. The PLA, 1951 needs to be consistent
with other legislations for welfare and social security.
Recommendation 2
– Wage Structure
Rationalize the
wage structure of Plantations workers. The cash component of negotiated wages
for tea Plantations labour should not in any case be less than the minimum
wages notified by respective state.
16. If wage structure of tea estate workers is matched with
an international benchmark for defining extreme poverty, probably, workers in
the tea gardens would fall in the bracket of extreme poverty. There are
complaints that in practice the wage component in cash in some States is fairly
low.
17. The wages are decided through a tripartite agreement
which is approved by the Government. Settling for cash wages below the
statutory minimum wage is on account of deductions made for facilities such as
education, health and housing etc. provided by the employer. There is
seasonality to produce and therefore to wages. Sometimes wages vary from garden
to garden. There is a need to reassess the wage structure so that no deduction
are made from the cash wages in respect of items which are otherwise provided
by the state to its citizens as entitlement. Also the valuation of wages in
kind should be done by the State.
18. The minimum wages paid to the Plantations labour should
not be less than the minimum wages declared by the respective State
Governments. The tripartite agreement process between workers, management and
government should ensure this. Wage payments need to be in monetary terms as
the minimum wages cannot be provided in kind. The State must play an effective
role in ensuring that the minimum wage is guaranteed. Wages may be fixed based
on three consumption units per workers.
Recommendation 3
– Governance issues
Strengthen administrative and management capacities of
Government Agencies entrustedwith implementation and oversight of welfare of
Plantations workers
19. Given the varied responsibilities at the Department of
Labour, there is an urgent need to upgrade the resources in terms of
infrastructure and manpower. The labour welfare activities of Tea Board need to
be synchronized with the activities of the Labour Department as there is a clear
need for better coordination between Labour Welfare Boards and the different
agencies involved in the welfare of Plantations labour in general. It is
important that the role of Tea Board is further strengthened with a rights
based framework for tea workers. There is need to review the role of Tea Board
in encouraging compliance of existing provisions under the PlantationsLabour
Act.
20. There is need to create mechanisms for coordination for
implementing and monitoring of various welfare schemes for tea garden labour at
various levels including inter- state coordination/state/district level
coordination. The role of the, district level coordination Committee will be
pivotal to ensure convergence of welfare programs and services and effective compliance
of welfare legislations. Each district having tea Plantations should have a Coordination
Committee to effectively address all issues concerning Plantations labour and ensure
convergence of government welfare programmes. The Committee may comprise of labour
union representatives, tea Plantations management, heads of development agencies
under the District Collector.
21. The specific issues related to demarcation of
responsibilities and activities across various agencies (Panchayati Raj
Institutions, line departments of district administration particularly education,
health, labour welfare, Plantations management, trade unions and NGO representatives)
could be reviewed and clarified by the district level coordination Committee.
Recommendation 4
Recognize and
preserve the culture and identity of Plantations labour
22. Culture and history gives a group identity and
solidarity. Pride in ones identity and culture gives one confidence and a
confident worker is always more productive.
23. The following measures may be adopted to preserve the
culture and sense of identity and dignity amongst Plantations labor:
1. To formulate a
policy for cultural and linguistic development. It is
necessary to adapt school curriculum to
include in school text
books suitable references on culture,
festival, language, traditions
and value system of people in the tea garden
in these areas.
2. To promote
important culture related activities and sports.
3. To provide
paid holidays for major festivals6
4. To give
suitable training for employment opportunities for youth of
the
Plantations labor households including preference in
appointment as teachers in these schools
5. To promote
Mother Tongue Based Multi-Lingual Education
System for promoting language and culture
and for
strengthening primary education.
Recommendation 5
Extend all welfare schemes and other flagship
programmes of the Government to include Plantations workers. Guidelines of
various welfare schemes may be reviewed by Central and State Governments to
extend the benefits to the tea Plantations labour.
24. Schemes of the Central Government like (i) Sarva Shiksha
Abhiyan for primary education (ii)
Indira Awaas Yojana for housing (iii) Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan for sanitation (iv)
National Rural Health Mission for health services (v) Rajiv Gandhi Grameen
Vidyutikaran Yojana for electrification (vi) MGNREGA for safety net employment
(vii) Mid Day Meal Schemes (for basic nutrition for children) (vii) ESIC (viii)
Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana etc. should be extended to the Plantations
workers. To facilitate this, the relevant provisions of Plantations Labour Act,
1951 may be reviewed. Tea estate owners must also ensure that the benefits of
entitlements under Government schemes are made available to the Plantations
labour. Further, as the welfare of Plantations labour is paramount, onus will
lie on owners of the tea estate to ensure that the welfare measures under the
provisions of Plantations Labour Act, 1951 are duly extended to the Plantations
labour. Also, Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) in the Ministry of Labour & Employment
should work out a modus operandi so that the government programmes can
optimally benefit the Plantations labour. Clear instructions may be issued in
this regard.
25. A large number of Plantations labour force comprises
women workers. Therefore, in all institutional
and decision making bodies, women should be adequately represented and must have
a say in the decision making so that the issues concerning their working
conditions including health are duly addressed.
26. The Parliamentary Standing Committee of Department of
Commerce in its 102 Report1 has referred to an Inter-Ministerial Committee
constituted to find solution to the problem of sharing the social cost due to
higher cost of production and thinning of profit margins on account of higher
labour wages and rise in input cost. The Inter-Ministerial Committee
recommended for sharing the social cost in the ratio of 10:40:50 (10% by the
concerned state government, 40% by the central government and 50% by the
Plantations owners). The issue was re-examined by subsequent Committees and
then by the Indian Institute of Plantations Management as a part of a study on
the structural infirmities of the Plantations sector. All these
Committees/Study emphasized the need for sharing the social cost. The Standing
Committee desired that the Department make all efforts to adopt the formula
recommended by the Inter-Ministerial Committee on sharing of social cost since
productivity of a worker is interlinked with his working conditions and his welfare
including sanitation, hygiene, education and sports facilities for their wards
etc. It also recommended that the Department of Commerce impress upon the concerned
State Governments to participate in the sharing of social cost and also urge
them to effectively implement the provisions relating to labour welfare
activities under Plantations Labour Act.
27. It is clear that welfare measures and provision of basic
facilities and infrastructure for the Plantations workers has to come within
the framework of and through the Plantations Labour Act. Alongside, they have
to be supplemented by extending coverage of Central Government’s welfare
schemes to Plantations. The recent trend of Rights based approach to
development and universalization of welfare programs and services as provided
under Right to Education. MGNREGA, Right to Food, requires that these rights
are enforced in all areas including Plantations with coverage of entire
population. Plantations cannot be allowed to exist as independent enclaves and
it needs to be ensured that workers in Plantations get both their dues under
the Plantations Labour Act and their rightful share of Government’s welfare
schemes.
28. The extension of schemes has already started in a
piecemeal way as in the case of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan in West Bengal and Assam.
However a concerted effort at planned extension is required by the concerned
Ministries of Government of India and State Governments.
29. Government should undertake the Tea garden school. There
should be Middle and High schools in between some tea Gardens with proper
infrastructure and teachers. The company should provide land to open government
school. Mother Tongue Based Multilingual Education System should be implemented
which has been already functioning in some parts of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and
in three localities in Assam in the district of Lakhimpur and Sonitpur2 Residential
schooling facilities such as Navodaya Vidyalaya, Kasturba Vidyalaya may be provided
in necessary cases.
30. To address the health issues such as anaemia, worm
infection, skin problems, TB and respiratory infections which are widely
prevalent in Plantations labour. There is an urgent need for convergence of
various on-going schemes in health sector. The resources in this regard need to
be augmented through national programmes like NRHM etc. The Plantations estate
should provide the facility of Garden Hospital and the facility at referral
level should be provided by State Governments./ ESIC.
31. Due to constraints like schemes being restricted to BPL
workers, absence of housing and land rights, conflict with administrative
jurisdiction etc. the schemes are not admissible for the Plantations labour. To
address these constraints, steps needs to be taken like a fresh survey of land
in Plantations areas. The land had been leased out to Plantations companies on
nominal rates. After obtaining requisite NOC from local panchayats/authorities
to construct housing facilities , workers can avail the benefits under various
programs such as Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY) and Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY).
Ministry of Rural Development may also be requested to make exception both for
BPL eligibility and land ownership to include tea garden workers in IAY.
Possibilities may also be explored to convert existing houses in the labour
line into multi storied houses.
Recommendation 6
Rehabilitate workers who have been victims of sudden
abandonment of the Plantations by the owners.
32. There should be clear policy guidelines to provide for
rehabilitation plan for the labour on closing down of a tea garden. As soon as
any tea garden is in crisis, the rehabilitation process should be triggered.
There have been instances where tea garden owners have suddenly abandoned the
garden leaving behind workers without any social security or safeguards .
Conclusion
33. It appears that the status
of Plantations workers in the southern states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and
Karnataka is significantly better from that prevailing in West Bengal and Assam
in terms of wages, welfare facilities and in general in the implementation of
the Plantations Labour Act, 1951. These recommendations when being considered
by the Government need to take account of the differences existing between the
two regions.
1Report on performance of
Plantations sector - Tea and Coffee Board (9th August, 2012)
2 In this school children get
education through their mother tongue at early stage and after third or fourth
year there is a system of transition to the other language.
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