THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Over 200 permanent employees of Vijayamohini Mills, functioning in the state capital under the National Textile Corporation (NTC), were asked to keep off work for the time being in the wake of acute shortage of raw material due to Covid pandemic.
The textile mill unit remained shut for one year and it restarted functioning only on March 31 this year. Later, the mill closed its operations again when the lockdown was imposed in the state on May 8.
The temporary employees have not been called back to work so far since it was reopened. The management has reportedly informed all the employees that they need not come to the mill from Tuesday and they will get half of the remuneration due t o shortage of raw material. “We were asked to stay at home with half of the monthly salary. So we approached the labour department with a complaint. The department had asked for an explanation from the mill.
The management also gave an explanation. However, nothing has happened so far and we are at the receiving end, said Antony, an employee. At Vijayamohini Mills alone there are around 500 employees, including temporary staff. Of them, 202 are permanent employees. Last year, the employees of the five NTC unit mills had written to the Union ministry seeking immediate intervention to restart operations.
The NTC management had decided to shut down all mills on March 23, 2020, and cut 50% of wages. This was in contradiction to a circular published by the Ministry of Labour and Employment which advised employers of public and private establishments not to terminate their casual or contractual workers. Meanwhile, the management said they are not in a position to function owing to the shortage of raw materials. The company will call back its employees once the crisis is over, a management representative said. “ At present, the mill is facing a crisis. Once the crisis is over, they will be called to work,” said an official.