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N. Ramakrishnan

Jamshedpur , Dec. 8

TATA Steel has decided to come out of the national-level wage settlement arrangement for workers in its collieries and will instead enter into an agreement with the workers on its own.

It would also like to exit the tripartite national-level wage settlement mechanism for workers in the steel plant, but the company's union is opposed to any such move. Addressing a team of visiting journalists here on Tuesday, Mr Niroop Mahanty, Vice President - Human Resources Management, said, "We have decided categorically that we are going to come out of it."

The wage negotiations for workers in coal fields are carried out by the Joint Bipartite Committee for Coal Industry, which is based in Delhi. Tata Steel has now decided that its wage agreements would be settled by the plant-level people.

Mr Mahanty said Tata Steel hoped to conclude an agreement with nearly 12,000 workers in its captive coal mines by December 31. "I would like to have a wage agreement with more variable pay," he said without providing more details. Tata Steel's captive coal mines are located in Jharia and West Bokaro, both of which are in Jharkhand . Mr Mahanty said the proposed wage agreement with coal workers would be a "reasonable one." The wage negotiations initiated by the Joint Bipartite Committee had started but they would take a long time, at least three years, to conclude. "I will sign an agreement by then," he said.

The coal industry still keeps sending notices to the company for attending wage settlement meetings, which it ignores. Mr Mahanty stated that the bipartite wage settlement mechanism for the coal industry did not have any statutory provision.

Explaining the rationale for the company's decision, he said no wage settlement should be done centrally. The company and its workers were best placed to decide what was good for both. The earlier agreement was signed two-three years ago.

Tata Steel's coal mine workers are part of the Rashtriya Colliery Mazdoor Sangh, which is affiliated to the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC). The steel plant workers are part of the Tata Workers' Union, which is also affiliated to INTUC.

Mr Mahanty said the company also wanted to exit the wage settlement mechanism for the steel industry. He said the company's rationale for exiting the wage settlement mechanism for coal workers would apply for steel plant workers too.

Asked about this, Mr R. B. B. Singh, President, Tata Workers' Union, told the journalists on Wednesday that the union was opposed to any such move to get out of the central tripartite mechanism. Wages for the steel industry are decided by the National Joint Negotiations Committee, which includes representatives from the Centre, four recognised trade unions — INTUC, the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, Hind Mazdoor Sabha and All-India Trade Union Congress — and managements of steel companies.

Mr Singh said the union had received a proposal from the management to discuss a wage settlement directly with it. "Straightaway we do not agree," he said and added, "I am not sure whether we will get a fair deal if we come out."

However, he said the union was prepared to discuss with the management its proposal for a direct wage settlement. The current wage settlement for the steel industry runs up to 2007 and hence, discussions for the next agreement are slated to begin only in early 2006. Mr Mahanty too said that the company did not want to upset the existing arrangement and would wait for negotiations for the next agreement to push its proposal across.

More Stories on : Trade & Labour Unions | Steel

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