Coir workers under the aegis of the Kerala State Coir Thozhilali Federation (AITUC) on Thursday organised a protest march in Alappuzha town raising various demands.
It was inaugurated by AITUC general secretary K. P. Rajendran.
The coir industry is going through a rough patch due to shortage of raw materials and major players shifting their base to Tamil Nadu.
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The workers said that they had become jobless and are facing an uncertain future. They further sought the government's intervention to help revive the crisis-ridden coir sector.
According to the federation, there are three lakh workers engaged in the coir industry in the State. Of this, 80 percent are women employed in coir spinning units.
“The coir workers are going through extreme difficult conditions following lack of work. Unemployment has become rampant in the sector. The State government has failed to increase wages and working days of coir workers. We want the Chief Minister to intervene in the matter and allay problems being faced by coir workers in the State,’’ said, P. V. Sathyanessan, general secretary, Kerala State Coir Thozhilali Federation.
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The federation said that Minister for Finance and Coir T.M. Thomas Isaac had increased the daily wage of coir workers by ₹50 without discussing it with the trade unions. It said that a lack of hike in the price of coir products had paralysed the functioning of coir societies in the State.