Workers to protest wage stagnation

The Democratic ASHA Workers Facilitator Union and the Mid-Day Meal Workers Union have jointly announced a district-level rally to be held on May 10 at the Canal Office in Amritsar, under the banner of ‘Maan Bhatta Workers Morcha’.

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A joint meeting of the district committee was held today, where union leaders Paramjit Kaur Mann and Mamta Sharma from both organisations expressed strong dissatisfaction over the unfulfilled promises made by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). They stated that despite the AAP’s pledge to double the wages of ASHA and mid-day meal workers, no such action has been taken during its three-year tenure.

“It is the primary responsibility of any democratic government to provide fair minimum wages to all workers without discrimination. Yet successive governments have continued to deny this right to mid-day meal workers, ASHA workers and facilitators, perpetuating a cycle of exploitation. The current AAP government is no exception,” said Mamta Sharma, president of the Mid-Day Meal Workers Union.

The leaders pointed out that the AAP came to power on the promise of increasing minimum and honorarium wages. “But now, they have completely backtracked. ASHA workers and facilitators are still receiving just Rs 2,500 per month and mid-day meal workers Rs 3,000 per month — not a single penny has been increased in the past three years, despite the inflation increasing dramatically during this period,” said Paramjit Kaur, an ASHA worker and union member. “How are we supposed to support our families on such meagre salaries?” she asked.

The ASHA and mid-day meal workers have long demanded that their salary be brought in line with the minimum wage of Grade IV employees, which is approximately Rs 7,000–Rs 8,000 per month. They are also seeking acceptance of several other demands.

To press for their rights, both unions will hold a district-level rally on Saturday, May 10, at the Canal Office, Amritsar. From there, they will march to the residence of Amritsar MLA Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh and submit a memorandum reminding him of the election promises made by the AAP.