Sreemangal (Moulvibazar) Correspondent

Based on the cost of living for a 6-member family in line with current market prices, the Moulvibazar District Committee of the Tea Workers’ Union submitted a memorandum to the Labour Adviser demanding living wages and full rations consisting of rice, flour, lentils, oil, sugar, soap, kerosene, firewood, etc., sufficient for a family’s needs per week, along with 10-point demands.

 On Sunday afternoon , the leaders of the Moulvibazar District Committee of the Tea Workers’ Union submitted the memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner.

The demands include 10-point demands, other demands include— provision of 500 grams of tea leaves free per month; stopping ration cuts for field land, reducing commodity prices, providing a 15% annual increment considering inflation, two festival bonuses per year equal to one month’s wages, six months’ maternity leave and allowance according to government law, equal pay for equal work regardless of permanent or temporary status, granting land rights, enforcing casual leave (10 days per year) in the tea industry and eliminating discrimination in earned leave, formulating a democratic labor law to remove discrimination in labor laws, stopping all irregularities in payment of weekly holiday wages and festival bonuses, and providing appointment letters, ID cards, service books according to labor law, as well as reopening all closed tea gardens.

Deputy Commissioner Md. Israil Hossain received the memorandum and assured that he would present the tea workers’ demands to the Labour Adviser and relevant authorities of the government and take appropriate measures to implement them. Before submitting the memorandum, leaders and workers of the Tea Workers’ Union staged a protest march with red flags in the Choumuhna area of the town. After the march, a rally was held under the chairmanship of Madhur Rajak, Vice President of the Tea Workers’ Union. 

The meeting was conducted by Harinarayan Hajra, General Secretary of the Union. Among the speakers were Rajat Biswas, General Secretary of Bangladesh Trade Union Centre Moulvibazar District Committee; Lakshimoni Bakti, female leader of the Moulvibazar District Committee of the Tea Workers’ Union; Subhash Gaur, Kajol Hajra, veteran tea worker leader Samuel Begman, Sunil Kar, Hemraj Lohar, and others.

Speakers at the rally said that tea workers have been living in tea gardens for about 200 years, generation after generation, enduring tigers, bears, snakes, leeches, and other wild animals, sacrificing countless lives to bring the tea industry to its present state. Yet even after 200 years, the wages of tea workers have not reached 200 taka. 

In today’s high-cost market, the maximum wage of tea workers (after the recent 5% increment) is Tk. 187.43 per day in ‘A’ class gardens, while in ‘B’ and ‘C’ class gardens it is Tk. 186.32 and Tk. 185.22 respectively. To earn Tk. 187.43 daily wages, at least 23 kg of raw tea leaves must be collected daily on average; if the target is not met, wages are deducted proportionally per kilogram.

In the past, tea workers used to receive rations of rice, flour, lentils, sugar, salt, soap, firewood, kerosene, etc. Currently, only 3.27 kg of rice or flour per week is provided per tea worker. Those who have field land face deductions of 112 kg of rice or flour annually per bigha from their rations. Among industrial sectors in Bangladesh, tea workers receive the lowest wages. Compared with the wages of 43 sectors declared by the Minimum Wage Board and those declared by the Wage Commission for state-owned industrial sectors, tea workers’ wages are extremely low. In defense, tea garden owners highlight housing, rations, and medical facilities. 

In reality, it is only for the need of the tea industry that tea workers live in gardens. The two-room houses of 222 square feet provided for tea workers’ accommodation do not even include a kitchen. Families of children and parents are forced to live cramped together in these two rooms under inhumane conditions.