Garment Workers in Ranchi Stage Protest Over Unpaid Salaries Amid US Tariff Disruptions

Garment Workers in Ranchi Protest Over Pending Salaries

On Tuesday, more than a thousand workers, mostly women, of Orient Craft Fashion Industries Ltd, a garment export company, held a demonstration outside the factory gate in Ranchi. The protest disrupted traffic on the Khelgaon-Tatisilway Road for around four hours, according to officials.

The demonstration was sparked by the workers' pending salaries, with many alleging that they had not received payment for February and March. Jyoti Devi, one of the workers, claimed that she had only received Rs 1,500 in two instalments for April. Other workers, such as Komal Kumari from Bihar's Samastipur district, alleged that they had been working without a salary for two months and were struggling to manage household expenses.

The HR Manager, Ravi Bhushan, acknowledged that salaries have been due and attributed the delay to the export of garments being drastically hampered due to tariffs imposed by the US. The company employs around 2,400 female workers, and Bhushan claimed that they were trying to clear their dues at the earliest.

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In an effort to resolve the issue, talks were held with the company management by Ranchi's Deputy Labour Commissioner, Avinash Krishna. The management assured the commissioner that they would settle the payment of the last two months by Monday and hold a discussion on the irregularities in the payment of salaries and other related issues of the workers with the owner of the company on Wednesday.

Following the assurances from the management, the workers withdrew their demonstration. The protest comes days after workers' unrest hit the industrial region of Noida in UP.