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Field Diary September 2023

 A Glance Into The Lives Of Workers With Bite-Sized Stories From Factories, Homes & Communities

A Long Wait for Change: The garment industry has long grappled with the issue of stagnant wages, leaving many workers struggling to meet basic needs. Amidst these challenges, there’s growing concern over the Factories (Karnataka Amendment) Act 2023. This legislation, if implemented, would allow factories to extend work hours to 12 a day. This pressing matter was the focal point of a recent conclave in Bengaluru on September 24th (seen in pic above), organised by Cividep’s partner organisations: Munnade, Sadhana, and Samruddhi. Former state labour minister P.G.R Sindhia joined the discourse, emphasising the urgent need to address the overdue revision of minimum wages. Workers at the conclave shared their personal experiences, shedding light on issues like poor working conditions, harassment, and the financial strain of low wages. The potential shift to 12-hour workdays further compounds their worries, raising questions about safety, health, childcare, and the balance of family responsibilities.

Bonus ‘non-payment’ Season: It’s the festive season again with factories having geared up for Ayudha Puja, a day of venerating all their tools and machinery. For workers in electronics factories in and around Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu, this is also the time they look forward to receiving their annual festive cash bonuses. But employers continue to find ways to avoid giving the much-awaited bonus. They are afraid of being gifted household equipment such as mixer-grinders in lieu of cash, or while non-permanent/contract workers fear being excluded from such pay outs.

Health in the E-Belt: Cividep India has been at the forefront of researching the health concerns of electronics workers in Sriperumbudur. In a recent collaboration with Electronics Watch, they hosted a workshop focusing on Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) for these workers. Supported by the Developing World Outreach Initiative (DWOI), this event was a result of Cividep’s in-depth studies, including health resource mapping and worker surveys. Led by Omana George from Electronics Watch, the workshop delved into topics like hazard mapping and chemical safety. The insights gained will be instrumental in tailoring future OHS workshops, with an emphasis on gender and health.

Layoffs Are Back: Contract workers of a prominent electronics factory in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu have been struggling after a recent 20-day layoff: September 15 to October 15. Temporary layoffs like these are common in the sector when there is little or no orders from major brands. During this period, the workers are ineligible for compensation as they lack appointment letters. They are also unable to establish continuous service for 240 days due to their fixed (11-month) employment contract. This setback underscores the precarious nature of contract work, leaving many workers without a financial cushion during this tough time.

Going, Going, gone: Shoe factories don’t shut down one fine day. A Cividep team, which has been observing several such shutdowns in the Ambur and Tirupattur leather industry in the recent past, noticed that the process is gradual. One factory had around 800 female workers till the end of 2022. In 2023, the company initiated gradual layoffs, releasing 10–15 workers every week. By February, they had terminated more than 150 workers aged 40 and above, citing reduced speed and target completion. Continuous layoffs reduced the workforce to 70 by June. In July, the company shut down, coercing the rest to give voluntary resignation letters with threats of settlement denial, including that of a three-year bonus. Despite bonus payments, many workers found that they had not received their Provident Fund (PF) dues, or that their PF accounts had been locked. The latter group of workers found out that this was because the payment to their PF accounts was irregular. 

In response to the closures, the team organised two training sessions for close to 55 workers on Provident Fund withdrawals, the importance of preserving pension savings, and bonus regulations, including negotiated bonuses and exemptions. Gratuity calculations and settlement procedures were also discussed.

Updates: Gokhularaj R, Kohila Senbagam, Pramod Kumar, Preethi Gowda

Pictures: Pramod, Gokhul

 

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