At least two union leaders present at the meeting said the issue of reconvening the Indian Labor Conference, a main tripartite advisory committee of the Labor Ministry that advises the government on issues related to the working class, was discussed.
“We requested the Finance Minister to hold the Indian Labor Conference again, for the first time since 2015. This would be the right forum to address labor issues,” said Harbhajan Singh Siddhu, general secretary of Hind Mazdoor Sabha.
“At the conference we will address our issues regarding new labor laws that threaten worker safety,” he added.
In the latest stakeholder meeting held by Sitharaman, the minister, senior officials of the Finance Ministry and eminent union leaders discussed ideas and suggestions that could boost the growth momentum and improve the conditions of the country’s workforce amid a growing government focus on manufacturing as a vehicle for growth. .
“We proposed that the budget focus on important issues like rural development, infrastructure, exports and skill development,” said B. Surendran, all-India organizational secretary of the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, who was present at the meeting. .
Discussions on 8th Wage Commission, Indian Labor Conference
“We have also requested the Finance Minister to immediately constitute the eighth wage commission and reconvene the Indian Labor Conference,” he added.
The Minister of Finance has already met with economists, representatives of industry, capital markets and the financial sector, farmers’ associations and MSMEs. On Tuesday he will meet with leaders from the trade and services industry, and the employment and training sectors.
Senior Finance Ministry officials present at Monday’s meeting included Ajay Seth, secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs, and the government’s chief economic advisor, V. Anantha Nageswaran.
Prominent trade union leaders who attended the consultation included B. Surendran (Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh), Vidya Sagar Giri (All India Trade Union Congress), Harbhajan Singh Sidhu (Hind Mazdoor Sabha), Tapan Kumar Sen (Centre for Trade Unions of India), Ramesh Parashar (United Trade Union Centre, India), K. Induprakash Menon (Central Committee of Trade Union Coordination Centre), K. Natarajan (Progressive Federation of Labour) and SP Tiwari (Trade Union Coordination Centre).
“We asked the Finance Minister not to see unions as villains. Instead, workers should be praised as heroes and engines of growth,” said Vidya Sagar Giri, vice-president of the All India Trade Union Congress, the union affiliated to the opposition. Congress Party.
“I have asked the honorable Finance Minister to pass the e-immigration bill as soon as possible. We have also asked the government to increase the benefits of social security schemes like EPFO (employees provident fund) and the ESIC (employee state insurance)” said SP Tiwari, national general secretary of the TUCC.
“The benefits that workers get from these schemes are not adequate, so we proposed an increase corresponding to the country’s inflation,” Tiwari added.
The allocation for welfare schemes (core sector and centrally sponsored schemes combined) in the provisional budget for FY25 announced in February increased by only 4.7% over the revised estimates for FY24.
According to the India Employment Report 2024, jointly released by the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the Institute of Human Development (IHD) in March, the labor force participation rate (LFPR), the working population ratio (WPR) and the unemployment rate. (UR) experienced a sustained decline between 2000 and 2018, but showed signs of improvement after 2019.
Meanwhile, wages have largely remained stagnant or declined, with real wages for regular and self-employed workers showing a negative trend after 2019. A substantial proportion of unskilled casual workers did not receive mandatory minimum wages in 2022. .
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Posted: Jun 24, 2024, 07:57 pm IST
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