Daily wagers get paid, in old notes

ALLAHABAD: Demonetisation of Rs 500 and 1,000 has come as a double blow for the daily wagers in the unorganised sectors. The cash crunch has either left them without work or their employers are happily dumping banned currency notes onto them.
Those working on construction sites or as lightmen in wedding ceremonies claimed they were being paid their wages in advance, in old notes, by their employers.
After a day’s work, 45-year-old mason Jagram Kumar, along with four labourers employed for renovation work in a Katra house, was paid Rs 12,000 in advance in invalid currency of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500.
“We cycle all the way from trans-Yamuna area of Karchana to work in Allahabad. Many workers have returned to their village for want of work. We are lucky to have work as the owner of the house wants to finish the work before a wedding in the family,” said Kumar, adding that they had no option but to exchange the notes later.
In another case, eight lightmen and women performers of a popular band party admitted they had been paid in banned currency.
“The contractor removed four lightmen from our group, claiming that clients are not ready to pay for a group of 10 lightmen and women. The remaining were asked to either work on old currency or find work somewhere else,” said 19-year-old Raju who works as a lightman during wedding season.
When TOI contacted the Colonelganj-based owner, he said, “Chirag taley andhera hota hai. Sab ko shaandar shaadi chahiye lekin Rs10,000 mein kaun si shaadi hoti hai? (Everybody wants a grand wedding but how do you manage that in a mere Rs 10,000?)”
He added, “We will clear our account with our clients after a month or two but the labourers need to be paid on a daily basis and I have old currency only. It is not that I am converting my black money into white.”
Officials at the district labour office said labourers should not be exploited by their employwers due to their ignorance.
“Unskilled labourers are entitled to a minimum wage, revised from time to time, and that too in legal currency, in their own bank accounts. If employers are exploiting them, they should lodge a complaint with us,” said assistant labour commissioner SN Yadav.