The district committee of the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) has urged District Collector S. Kandasamy to immediately fix and notify the district minimum wages for 2026-27 and ensure their implementation with retrospective effect from April 1, 2026.In a petition emailed to the Collector, district president S. Chinnasamy said the delay in notifying the revised wages had deprived thousands of daily wage workers employed in government and government-aided establishments of a wage increase.The union said the revised wages should take into account the steep rise in the cost of living caused by increases in the prices of LPG, fuel and essential commodities. It also urged the administration not to rely solely on the Dearness Allowance revision announced by the Commissioner of Labour, contending that it did not adequately reflect prevailing inflation.AITUC further sought a uniform wage structure across the district, arguing that fixing wages based on the category of local body, corporation, municipality, town panchayat or village panchayat, resulted in disparities. It cited the principle of “equal pay for equal work” and called for a common wage rate.The union also alleged that several government departments and private contractors had failed to implement the minimum wages fixed by the Labour Department and the District Collector. It specifically referred to workers engaged through contractors in the Erode Corporation, municipalities, panchayats, Government Erode Medical College Hospital at Perundurai and other government hospitals.The petition sought action against erring departments, contractors and officials, and demanded payment of pending minimum wage arrears to workers. Published - June 17, 2026 06:12 pm IST