Although several planters want ‘unpaid holidays’ shifted from the peak season to the lean period in the north Bengal region, state labour minister Moloy Ghatak is not very keen on changing the tradition.

As per prevalent practice, workers avail of unpaid holidays during Fagua, Kali Puja and Durga Puja, in addition to other paid holidays. According to planters, this practice has been leading to losses in the production in tea industry. Minister Ghatak has observed that the present practice should continue, but local arrangements may be made ro ensure tea quality and productivity, while workers should cooperate with the tea garden management. The minister’s observation may be based on trade unions’ argument that the holiday practice should stay on “conventional grounds and religious sentiments.”

In a recent meeting at Rotunda at Writers’ Buildings in Kolkata, Minister Ghatak advised operating trade unions to cooperate with the garden management at the local level for an upward revision of base plucking task as the trade unions claimed that the task has improved in many gardens where the management is sound and efficient.

To maintain better production of green leaf and quality made-tea, the existing productivity agreement, signed on 25 July 2005, needs modification soon, according to planters. In fact, the meeting was called to discuss the prescribed eight hours of actual work, excluding the period of rest, in plantations. It was proposed for both workers in plucking and non- plucking sectors.

However, unions argued that there were some activities like spraying, pruning and maintenance where eight hours of work cannot be strictly implemented because of the nature of work.

It was finally decided that every worker will work for eight hours, excluding the period of rest, but not the period of ‘weighment,’ and will work according to the nature of work, like spraying of pesticides.

The timing of work should be decided bilaterally at the garden level by the management and the operating unions. Planters also pointed out that workers should work two ‘bela’ at the commencement of the season when there is sufficient flush and abundance of leaf.

In fact, tea plantation managements want “abolition of the half-bela work” before and after a holiday, as it damages the tea leaf and affects production.

However, unions do not agree to the planters’ views and contend that the workers work on a continuous (long bela) basis on such days of ‘half-bela.’

The house later decided that this practice (halfbela) should be discontinued.