Wage negotiations between Ahmedabad mill owners and workers to on Tuesday

AHMEDABAD: Negotiations between the 15,000 workers of the Ahmedabad textile industry and the mill owners pertaining to wage hikes would begin Tuesday, Chintan Parikh, president of Ahmedabad Textile Mills' Association (ATMA) told ET. After ending the near month-long industrial unrest late last week, workers are now keen to see their wages hike 40%.

The Textile Labour Association representing the textile workforce of the city on Monday wrote to ATMA to begin negotiations. ""We have written to ATMA seeking that it begins a dialogue of wage hike," said Amar Barot, TLA representative.

Near 8,000 workers of the Ahmedabad textile industry, predominantly engaged in making denim fabric, took to streets since June 4 to demand wage hike. The average wages of a worker in the sector amounts to Rs 5000.

Apart from minor revisions in the early part of the last decade, wages have not been revised since 1965. Arvind Ltd, Ashima Ltd and Asarwa Mills saw production coming to a near standstill in June as workers kept off work demanding immediate hikes. With Arvind Ltd promising to reinstate sacked workers, the strike was called off late last week, paving way for negotiations.