Rural workers stage protest with food carriers demanding basic pay, other entitlements

Members of Tamil Nadu Rural Development Labours Union, ahead of the State-wide indefinite dharna protest announced on August 5, staged a protest here on Tuesday with food carriers.  

P. Arumugam, district president of the union, said that as a precursor to the August 5 massive State-wide strike they decided to display their strength in the struggle for their rights.  

Of the several demands, he said, the primary was to adhere to the universal labour and human rights by declaring the various grades of rural workers as permanent workers.  

“Without job permanency, we are in constant fear of losing our jobs. Owing to the nature of our jobs in handling waste while cleaning, we never know when we would be infected or fall sick,” he stated.

As most of the rural workers were in sanitation works, without safety mechanisms like health insurance, their lives were in constant danger, he noted.  

For those employed as sanitation inspectors, overhead tank operators, sanitation workers, school sanitation workers, computer operators, among others employed under village panchayats, the basic pay as determined by the law and various Supreme Court orders should be provided, Mr. Arumugam said.  

“As the minimum wage is ₹18,000, the basic wage for our workers starts at ₹2,000,” he alleged.  

In addition to being devoid of basic entitlements like insurance, minimum wage, health support, safety gear, among others, due to insufficient labour force, they were also forced to overwork, he said.  

 In the beginning of 2025, following a similar protest, the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) officials assured the protesters that their demands would be fulfilled in a few months, he stated.  

Mr. Arumugam stressed that the protest announcement was to remind the government that they failed the workers through their false promises.