KOTTAYAM: The migrant labourers in the State took a break from their work this Sunday to attend the first ever State conference of their trade union, Kerala Migrant Workers Union, affiliated to the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), held here.
This is the first state conference of the only trade union of migrant labourers in Kerala, which was constituted in 2013 under the aegis of the AITUC.
According to a 2013 study conducted for the Department of Labour and Skills of the Government of Kerala, there are over 25 lakh domestic migrant labourers in Kerala from across India, as well as from Bangladesh and Nepal. With an annual arrival rate of 2.35 lakhs, the figure stood over 40 lakhs in 2016.
The representatives of migrant labourers from Kashmir, Punjab, Bihar, Manipur, Meghalaya, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka assembled at the Ponkunnam Varkey memorial hall here, as disciplined members had participated in the meeting, which discussed various issues being faced by the migrant laborer community across the State.
“We have decided to set up a trade union for migrant labourers to save them from grave exploitation by contractors, agents and even police. They are not being given proper dwelling as well as are denied fair wages. Since they are not part of the vote bank politics, they are being ignored by political parties as well,” said Binu Bose, who was elected as the general secretary of the union in the conference.
It is estimated that a sum of Rs 25,000 crores going outside the state each year as wages to the migrant workers.
Binu Bose added that the objective of the trade union was to end discrimination against migrant laborers, and to integrate them into mainstream society. “The migrant labourers are facing discrimination in remuneration as they are denied wages on par with local workers. This should be stopped. Many of them are not even aware of their rights and we wanted to make them a sensitive labour force,” he said, adding that they have already constituted units for their union in seven districts and would extend their activity to the entire State soon.
CPI state secretary, Kanam Rajendran, inaugurated the conference at a meeting presided over by state president V K Santhosh Kumar. As many as 530 representatives from various units attended the meeting. The conference raised various demands including, ration facility and health security insurance coverage for them.