Study shows workers grossly underpaid
Research by the Kandy-based Institute of Social Development (ISD) shows plantation workers should be paid a daily wage of at least Rs. 1,108 in order to meet their daily expenses and ensure a decent life.
The ISD, a non-governmental organisation, said its modelling of the cost of living for a tea plantation worker showed the employee should be earning Rs. 27,707 a month whereas in fact the wage being currently paid was Rs. 18,250. The research was based on Anker methodology using primary data collected from a field survey and secondary sources.
The study found that current gross wage level in the tea sector falls short by approximately 26.09 per cent from the estimated gross living wage required for a decent family living standard.
It states that, “to reach the estimated living wage or to reach the required standard for a decent living, the prevailing gross wage needs to be increased by 35.31 per cent when common in-kind benefits and cash allowances are con- sidered as a part of prevailing wages”.
The report notes that the economic performance of the tea sector indicates that the tea prices are continuously increasing except during natural low-yielding periods coupled with increases in the cost of production.
The ISD report points out that wage hikes should not be seen as bearing sole responsibility for production cost increases. Costs are also influenced by poor performance in tea production, lack of reinvestment in land and crop management and increasing management-related costs. Other factors included low land productivity, a reduction in the extent of tea-bearing land and decrease in quality of product due to blending with low-quality products.
The study said labour productivity was continuously increasing although the number of labourers employed in the tea estate sector was declining, and this justified past wage rises.
"Despite the many development initiatives under taken in the estate sector during the past, the estate workers continue to live in poor conditions, compared to other communities in the country. Therefore, improving their life style up to a basic acceptable and decent living standards demands a daily living wage of Rs. 1,108 per worker and monthly net cash earning of Rs 27,707,” the report states.
The report said raising the daily wages of tea workers would require a concerted effort by trade unions, management companies and the government to work out the measures that best fit the specific conditions of the industry and the improvement of living standards of the workers and their families.
“Achieving this depends on the bargaining power of trade unions, willingness of plantation companies to pay higher wages and the actual interest of the government and state in improving the living conditions of the estate community by economically empowering it through mandating a higher daily wage,” the ISD report said.