The Hindu Business Line : Impasse over `productivity rewards' for port workers continues

THE management of the 11 major port trusts under the banner of the Indian Ports Association and the leaders of the five workers' federations failed to arrive at an agreement on the contentious issue of productivity-linked rewards (PLR) for port and dock workers during a conciliation meeting called by the Chief Labour Commissioner (CLC) here on Tuesday.

"There was no settlement today despite prolonged talks between the two sides in the presence of the CLC. With both the Government and the workers' federations sticking to their respective stands, the CLC had to adjourn the meeting to December 6," Mr M.L. Bellani, Secretary, All-India Port and Dock Workers' Federation, told Business Line.

The conciliation meeting was called in the wake of a notice served by the port workers' federations to go on an indefinite strike from December 8 or any day thereafter to press their demand for the continuation of the uniform 20 per cent PLR paid to workers at all the major ports. However, since the matter was being adjudicated by a national tribunal, the workers were paid an advance equivalent to 8.33 per cent during 2002-03 and 2003-04.

The Shipping Ministry had sought to alter the PLR scheme by formulating a uniform formula which, when applied, would result in different amounts being paid at different ports, depending upon their productivity and profits.

The Ministry adopted the stand that profit-making ports should pay more PLR to their workers than their loss-making counterparts. However, the workers' federations opposed this move, arguing that when salaries and perks were uniform at all the ports, the PLR should not be made port specific.

"PLR has to be paid uniformly at all the major ports irrespective of profit or loss. When the service conditions, pay scales and perks are common to all the major ports, why should the PLR vary from port to port?" asked Mr Bellani.

However, the Government believes PLR should be port-specific. "Better performing ports should pay more PLR to their workers while loss-making ports must stop paying it," Government sources said, adding that the new scheme was aimed at improving the productivity at the major ports.

The federations fear that the workers at the loss-making major ports such as Mumbai and Kolkata would stand to lose if the new PLR is implemented. However, sources said that even under the new scheme, the average PLR would range from13 per cent to 18 per cent, depending upon the productivity and performance parameters at the ports.

In such a case, the lowest rate of PLR would still be higher than the minimum 8.33 per cent bonus that the workers would have got had the port trusts been covered under the Bonus Act. The incentives given to port workers are called PLR as port trusts come under the definition of local bodies and are not covered by the Bonus Act.

The existing PLR scheme gives a flat rate of 20 per cent to the workers at all the major ports irrespective of profits and productivity, subject to a salary cap of Rs 2,500 per month per employee.

As per an agreement signed between the two sides on September 19, 2002, and later ratified on October 8, 2002, the Government agreed to pay PLR at a flat rate of 20 per cent across-the-board for 2001-02 on the basis of the 1996 agreement and the matter was referred to a national tribunal for adjudication and report which is awaited. But, the work of the tribunal came to a halt following the retirement of its top official in September this year. Meanwhile, the workers have demanded that the PLR for the last two years be paid on the basis of the 1996 settlement till a new settlement or award is reached.

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