Weavers in power looms in Chennimalai allege that their wages have been reduced by Rs 5 per piece. Chennimalai, in Tamil Nadu’s Erode is famous for its blankets called Jamakaalam.
N Arumugam, Powerloom Workers Union President of AITUC, said, “Weaving is the main occupation in Chennimalai with more than 5000 power loom units operating here. Around 3,000 workers are dependent on this. All power looms here produce blankets. A worker was paid Rs 27 for producing one blanket. A worker who works for 12 hours daily will get Rs 540. Three weeks ago, wages were cut by Rs 5 per piece.”
He also added that power loom owners are currently offering only Rs 21 to Rs 22 for a single blanket, which adds up to a cut of Rs 120 on a daily basis. The worker will then have to work for an additional four hours to get to Rs 540. He said that this issue has been raised by the power loom owners but are yet to get a response.
A power loom worker lamented that the prices for essential commodities are sharply rising. He also said “It is not right to reduce wages for workers in such circumstances. It does not matter if wages are not raised in line with the rise in prices. Wages should not be reduced.”
A power loom owner defended the wage cuts by saying that for one blanket, they get up to Rs 55 from the textile companies and since the order flow has decreased, the cost per order has also come down.
Soundararajan, secretary of Chennimalai power loom owners association, said, “As summer has started, sales have decreased. This is the reason why wages have been reduced. We will advise members not to reduce wages of the weavers.”
