Panel recommends wage hike of labourers

Bhubaneswar: Good news for the toiling mass of the State ahead of Labour Day: the State government is most likely to increase the minimum wage for them. Labour minister Prafulla Mallick said yesterday that the Labour Advisory Committee has sent a recommendation to the State government to that effect and his ministry is going to consider the proposal very soon.

Mallick said the government will decide about increasing the minimum wage limits after due consultation with concerned departments. With the revised wage policy of the State government effective from October 1, 2014, the unskilled labourers are currently entitled to get a minimum daily wage of Rs 150.

For semi-skilled labourers, the amount is Rs 170 while it is Rs 190 for skilled labourers and Rs 205 for highly-skilled labourers. Besides, they are also entitled to get a variable dearness allowance of Rs 2.50 daily.