Unions call on plantations companies to adhere to Collective Agreement clauses

Tuesday, 26 July 2011 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Shezna Shums

Unions are urging plantation companies to strictly adhere to the Collective Agreement clauses and not haphazardly change the normal quantity of tea that has to be plucked or make other changes without consensus. The plantation industry stakeholders are urging that productivity within the plantations be increased for the new Wage Agreement to be sustainable by the companies.

However, trade unions representing plantation workers say that the agreements signed between the two parties are not being adhered to fully to ensure the workers receive their fair share of the deal.

These comments were made following the Planters Association of Ceylon’s statement that the industry would collapse if productivity does not increase, as Sri Lankan tea is more expensive in comparison to average world prices.

Joint Plantation Trade Union Centre (JPTUC) President S. Ramanadan said that some estate superintendents were sporadically increasing the normal quantity of tea leaves that have to be plucked by a tea plucker, which is against the Collective Agreement. When the normal quantity of tea is to be changed, the superintendents have to hold discussions with the workers and other plantation leaders and then make such changes with their approval.

However, following the Wage Agreement between the plantation unions, Federation of Employers and Regional Plantation Companies, some estates saw a sudden increase in the minimum quantity of tea that has to be plucked.

Ramanadan explained that this sporadic increase was against Collective Agreement Clause 9 (1) and (2) as well as Clause 17 of the Collective Agreement enforced since 2003 and still in practice.

There are two agreements relevant to the plantation industries; one is the Collective Agreement and the other is the Wage Agreement which is signed once every two years.

Ramanadan noted that before any changes are made to the working conditions, estate leaders have to discuss these matters and make the changes as this is stated in the Collective Agreement. “Some superintendents act in gross violation of this agreement,” he noted.

“If a tea plucker’s normal quantity is 12 kilos to be plucked today, then tomorrow it is increased to 18 kilos, which leads to a lot of problems,” highlighted Ramanadan. “If these procedures are properly followed, then there would be no problem among the sector.”

It was also brought up that fortnightly consultations have to be held between the superintendents and others to discuss workers’ issues and other matters affecting the plantations.

He added that for productivity to increase, the estates should have adequate tea bushes and work for the plantation workers. It was highlighted that some estates do not apply sufficient fertiliser, thereby having only limited amounts of tea bushes that can be plucked. Another issue was that the soil has also been reused a number of times and now requires rejuvenation for a better crop of tea.

The increase in productivity from the plantations does not solely depend on the plantations workers alone, but also on the companies running these estates and the investment they put into uplifting these crops.