With lockdown norms being relaxed and the commercial sector limping back to normalcy, labourers in the unorganised sector are expecting to return to their workplaces soon. However, many are unsure if they will still have their jobs.
Though shops on S.M. Street have opened, many employees are yet to join work. “When I asked, my employer told me to wait till May 17 and that they needed me back only once the business picked up pace,” said a worker. With the unusual timing of shops, which were opened mainly for Ramzan shoppers, business is slow to pick up. “The shops need to be closed by 5 p.m. However, during this season, we get business only after iftar , at night,” said P. Viji, State secretary of Asanghatitha Meghala Thozhilali Union. With Eid falling within a week, there was hardly any time for business to gather pace, she added.
In some shops, employees are being engaged on rotation basis. However, they get paid only for the days they are on duty.
Some workers are also unable to rejoin work because their advanced age makes them more vulnerable to infections.
Asha P.V., a laundry worker at Muthalakkulam, started getting work only on Saturday. She collects dirty clothes from lodges and beauty parlours, washes and return them, to earn a living. She secured some orders when some beauty parlours were being cleaned up. “I will be back to normal work only if the six beauty parlours I work for are opened,” she said.
“The condition of labourers in the unorganised sector is pathetic. Most of them have no savings or no other means of livelihood. They have rents and bills to pay. Some are in heavy debt and on the verge of suicide,” said Ms. Viji.
