Congress Advocates Rs 400 Minimum Daily Wage Amid Declining Real Wages

Congress argues that official statistics highlight a decline in purchasing power for workers over the past decade. They urge the Union Budget to establish a nationwide minimum wage of Rs 400 per day to address slow wage growth and rising inflation, ensuring justice for laborers.

Congress on Thursday highlighted multiple data sources, including the government's statistics, showing that "workers can buy less today than they could 10 years ago." The Union Budget is presented as an opportunity to ensure "justice to laborers" by establishing a nationwide minimum wage of Rs 400 per day.

Party General Secretary Jairam Ramesh stated that various data, including government statistics, consistently show a decrease in workers' purchasing power compared to a decade ago. "A combination of slow wage growth and back-breaking inflation has caused an unprecedented decline in real wages," Ramesh explained.

Ramesh referenced the Labour Bureau's Wage Rate Index, noting that real wages stagnated between 2014 and 2023, and declined between 2019 and 2024. He cited Agriculture Ministry data, indicating that real wages for agricultural laborers grew annually by 6.8% under the UPA government, but declined by 1.3% under the current government.

According to Periodic Labour Force Survey Series data, average real earnings stagnated between 2017 and 2022 across all employment types. Centre for Labour Research and Action data also showed stagnant or declining real wages for brick kiln workers from 2014 to 2022, a low-paying job for India's poorest.

"To deliver justice to our shramiks and break this cycle of stagnant wages, the INC guaranteed a nationwide minimum wage of Rs 400 per day in its Nyay Patra. The Union Budget offers an opportunity for the government to fulfill this need," Ramesh said. He concluded, "A nationwide minimum wage of Rs 400 per day is an idea whose time has come."

(With inputs from agencies.)