While welcoming the Code on Wages and the Social Security Code, Safai Karmachari Sangh, Manipur, representing sanitary workers under Urban Local Bodies, has urged Imphal Municipal Corporation to declare pending bonus before Christmas and New Year.
The organisation stated in a statement issued by Y. Sandhyarani Devi, Joint Secretary of Safai Karmachari Sangh, Manipur said that the universalisation of minimum wages w.e.f. 78th Independence Day of India has conferred a legal right of minimum wages to workers all over the country under the Code on Wages. Minimum wages shall necessarily be revised every five years under the compulsion of the Code; wages shall be paid into the bank account of the worker; facility for claiming wages unpaid or delayed beyond three consecutive months is allowed within a span of three years; appointment letter shall be issued to every employee. Besides, it extends the Employees’ State Insurance Scheme to all establishments employing more than ten workers with all-India coverage and the Employees’ Provident Fund, Employees’ Pension Scheme and Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance Scheme to all establishments employing twenty or more workers. Provisions have also been made for enrolment under social security schemes through Workers’ Facilitation Centres and Conciliation Officers have been vested with powers to enforce attendance of both parties.
While welcoming these labour reforms, the Sangh appealed to the Manipur State Government to ensure proper enforcement of the provisions for safeguarding workers’ rights. The sanitary workers under the Imphal Municipal Corporation and other Urban Local Bodies have yet to be brought under the Employees’ State Insurance Scheme and the Employees’ Provident Fund, several long-pending arrears, backlog salaries, and appointment orders remain pending; minimum wages have also not been paid in many cases. The Sangh urged the Labour Department for enforcement of the Labour Codes of 2020 within a stipulated timeframe and to effect monitoring of compliance effectively.
Referring to the unsafe and vulnerable working conditions faced by Safai Karmacharis in the State, the Sangh said there is a need to constitute a Manipur State Safai Karmachari Commission which was recommended through correspondence from the Government of India. It said absence of the commission has led to the continued neglect of longstanding demands and grievances remaining unaddressed even during President’s Rule and urged immediate action to safeguard dignity and welfare of sanitation workers.
The statement further said, “The workers are entitled to bonus payments under the Labour Codes and thus appealed to the Labour Department to issue an Office Memorandum to ensure that bonuses are paid before Christmas and New Year in the interest of social justice.” It also expressed apprehension over the lack of proactive measures by the Labour Department, stating that this inaction has deprived the workers of the benefits guaranteed under the Labour Codes and affected industrial harmony in Manipur.