Stark gap between ‘living’, actual wage of Assam tea workers: Oxfam study
The study, conducted by Oxfam India, a frontline non-profit organisation working towards alleviating inequality in the country, considers ‘living wage’ in relation to International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) concept of ‘decent work’ and ‘quality of life’.
From Our Correspondent
GUWAHATI:
There is a stark gap between the “living” and actual wage of workers in the tea plantation sector in Assam, a study has revealed.
The study, conducted by Oxfam India, a frontline non-profit organisation working towards alleviating inequality in the country, considers ‘living wage’ in relation to International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) concept of ‘decent work’ and ‘quality of life’.
According to the estimates of the study conducted in association with the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, “the living wage for a worker should be Rs 884 per day for a decent living in the tea plantation sector.”
The sample study covering seven districts of Assam however observed that tea plantation workers actually receive wages between Rs 160 and Rs 180 per day.
“For a dignified life, the compensation for workers should include Rs 285 per day as expenditure on food items (considering four members in a family) and Rs 599 per day as expenditure on non-food items, both essential and non-essential utilities,” it estimated.
However, the proposed living wage is 81 per cent higher than the actual wages received by workers and 54 per cent higher than the National Minimum Wage suggested by the Anup Satpathy Committee (2019), which is Rs 342 for Assam, the study said.
Oxfam India launched a report, “In Defence of Living Wages for Tea Plantation Workers: Evidence from Assam” last week.
The study was jointly done by Oxfam India and Dr Rahul Suresh Sapkal, assistant professor, Centre for Policy Studies, IIT Bombay.
The research is based on a primary survey covering 5,000 tea workers across Biswanath, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, Lakhimpur, Tezpur, Golaghat and Sivasagar districts between October and December 2020.
“The study finds a stark gap between the current wages that tea workers receive vis a vis the living wages that has been calculated. We appeal to the government and tea industry to consider an upward revision of the wages to improve the lives of the tea workers,” Oxfam India chief executive officer, Amitabh Behar said in a statement.
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