The Delhi High Court has asked the state government to file its reply on a petition filed against the 47 per cent hike in minimum wages for workers employed in the national capital.
A bench comprising of justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Valmiki Mehta said the government must explain the basis of its decision by July 13. On March 9, the Delhi government had announced the hike in wages to be implemented from February 1. But the Apex Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) of NCT challenged the policy, stating it they should have been consulted beforehand.
''Though there is a need for the wage policy to be reviewed, it should be linked with productivity not with the consumer price index. The steep hike in wages will adversely affect the already negotiated shipments of an exporter who has already booked his orders based on the then prevailing wages,'' the ACCI said.
The petitioners alleged that the arbitrary hike in the minimum wages up to 47 per cent will have an adverse impact on the already thin margin available to garment exporters as the highly competitive export market has not recovered from the worst-ever recession. It also urged that the government should roll back its decision and revise the wages after due consultations with employers’ associations.
Garment exports from India declined over 13 per cent during April to February 2009-10 in the year-on period due to the global economic recession and consequent falling retail sales in the United States and the European Union.
|
|
|
|
