Chandigarh, Jun 9 (PTI) Punjab chapter of Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) today demanded that the state government implement its decision of treating minimum wages as basic wages for the welfare of factory workers. "We are demanding that the state government should implement its decision of fixing minimum wages as basic wages of workers," CITU (Punjab), General Secretary, Raghunath Singh, said here today. He said workers will be advantaged as social security benefits like PF and ESIC will be calculated on higher rates. Punjab government in its notification issued on February 2012 had announced that minimum wages fixed would be basic wages, Singh said. CITU is demanding that the minimum wages be raised for each category of workers as well. Singh alleged that the industry, particularly in Ludhiana, was putting pressure on the state government against implementing the decision. Over 50 lakh workers are employed in the state's industrial sector and minimum wages for unskilled worker is currently Rs 4,268, he added.
