Chennai, 02 January (H.S.) : Formal discussions regarding the revision of the wage structure for employees in fair price shops across Tamil Nadu were conducted on Friday.

The meeting took place at the office of the Registrar of Cooperative Societies in Kilpauk and was presided over by the Additional Registrar of Cooperative Societies, M Veerappan.

The primary objective of these deliberations was to establish a new and fair pay scale for salespersons and packers who are employed in cooperative institution-run fair price shops throughout the state.

Representatives from various trade unions and fair price shop employees’ associations attended the session to present their long-standing demands. During the talks, the union leaders submitted a comprehensive charter of demands and detailed memoranda.

They highlighted the urgent need for a salary hike, citing the continuously rising cost of living and the significant increase in their daily workload. A major demand raised by the unions was the creation of a separate, dedicated department for the Public Distribution System to ensure better administration and service conditions.

The state government had previously constituted a ten-member committee, led by Additional Registrar Veerappan, to evaluate these issues following threats of a state-wide strike.

Authorities stated that the committee is currently assessing existing pay scales, workload patterns, and financial models to implement a sustainable wage revision.

Official sources indicated that the feedback and suggestions provided by the unions during this meeting will be consolidated and presented to the government.

The authorities assured that a final decision regarding the revised wage framework and its implementation timeline would be taken after a thorough review of the submitted representations.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Dr. R. B. Chaudhary