Trade unions to meet Jaitley for pre-budget consultations

New Delhi: Central trade unions (CTUS) are scheduled to meet Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on November 19 for pre-budget consultations where they will raise issues of minimum wage and pension.

RSS-affiliated Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), which will also participate in the deliberations, said that it will urge the government to implement its notification to raise minimum wage from Rs 102 to Rs 350 per day for the entire country.

"In August, government had notified that it will provide social security benefits to Aanganwadi, Asha and Mid-day meal workers. It had set up a committee to look into the matter. We will demand that it should make adequate arrangements from this in the coming budget," BMS said in a statement.

BMS General Secretary Virjesh Upadhyay said that the unions welcome the government's decision to ban Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes in a bid to check black money.

He said that the government should make adequate monetary arrangement in the coming budget for the implementation of various schemes such as Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushal Yojna, Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Yojna, Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Urban Mission and Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna.

Earlier, the Trade Union Co-ordination Centre (TUCC) had said that it will raise the issue of fixation of minimum wages for all the workers across India at Rs 21,000 per month and fixation of monthly pension to the EPFO subscribers at Rs 3,000 per month at the consultations.

Besides, other issues to be taken up include budgetary allocation for social security fund for 45.7 crore informal sector workers and withdrawal of foreign direct investment (FDI) from core areas like defence, railways, banking and space.

"TUCC also welcomes the move of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discontinue the old currency of Rs 500 and 1000, which will stop the black money circulation in the economy and stop terror financing too," it had said.