Workers not to buy stake in Northern Tata Tea estates
28 Mar 2007
Kolkata:
Most of Tata Tea''s workers have rejected the company''s
plan to induct them as shareholders of Amalgamated Plantations,
the new company comprising its tea estates in Assam and
north Bengal, ahead of the 1April operational deadline.
Tata Tea now plans to proceed with restructuring Amalgamated
Plantations with minor or non-existent worker participation.
Amalgamated Plantations was to be formed with Tata Tea, Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services (IL&FS), and International Finance Corporation (IFC), the commercial lending arm of the World Bank, each holding a 20 per cent stake.
Workers
were expected to pick up a 15-20 per cent stake and Mumbai-based
consultant Ranjit Bathakur''s GMS would have acquired the
rest.
With the rejection by the workers Tata Tea, IFC, IL&FS and GMS would acquire the portion earmarked for workers. The entity is valued at Rs359 crore.
As against this, one and a half years ago Tata Tea hived off its south Indian estates to Kanan Devan Hills Plantations Company, in favour of workers. Tata Tea holds an 18 per cent stake in the company.
For
the workers in Assam the main contention is that once
the workers become shareholders, they would not be covered
under the Plantations Labour Act under which they can
demand gratuity, wage revision, provident fund and ration.
As shareholders, they would be part of the management.