Labour minister to meet FM on EPF interest rates

NEW DELHI: Amidst reports of a cut in interest rates on the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), labour minister Sis Ram Ola has said he will meet finance minister P Chidambaram to decide on returns for more than 3.2-crore subscribers this year.
Mr Ola, who is chairman of the central board of trustees of the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), said that he would take up the matter with the finance minister after a discussion within the board. “Workers’ rights will be given a cardinal priority. With this in mind, I will meet the finance minister,� he said.
Refusing to hazard a guess on interest rates, Mr Ola said trade unions and employers would be consulted at a tripartite level before taking any decision.
Admitting that any cut in the EPF rate was a “matter of concern�, he said the ministry would take a comprehensive view so that workers got the maximum return on their hard-earned money.