Child-and-adult-labour-in-the-export-oriented-garment-and-gem-polishing-industry-of-India

Bonded child labour in the synthetic gem polishing industry of Trichy
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and size. Employers misused the lack of knowledge workers had about quality and often told the
workers that the gem stones they had polished were not of a high quality and they would pay the
worker less. Informants said that employers had a certain tactic to encourage workers, who were
often kinship, to take a loan; employers were very nice to their workers and they allowed them to
take holidays and breaks during the day, etc. Employers in the synthetic gem polishing industry
knew exactly how to keep people working for them, but in reality they made their labour and life
unfree. Workers were not allowed to work for other unit-owners otherwise they were harassed
and threatened.
(The processes in the synthetic gem polishing industry are the same as in the gem polishing
industry in Jaipur, but the machines are more traditional and often use no power). Children did
jobs like joining, shaping and polishing and adults did jobs like cutting, shaping, polishing and
checking.
(1) Manufacturing units in the centre of Trichy
In Trichy a labour union, the Tamil Nadu Synthetic Gem Cutting Labour and Protection
Association, was active to improve working conditions for the workers. The union was mainly
active in units which were located close to its office which is near the centre of Trichy and some
units outside Trichy. Recently, the union arranged a collective insurance for a group of workers
who were member of the union. In the areas where the union was active hardly any children were
found working and the workers seemed very happy, as they were no longer dependent on
middlemen. The labour union interfered when labour problems arose in the manufacturing units
where the members worked. The union, however, could do nothing for the workers in the remote
villages, as it was too dangerous there.
In the manufacturing units in the centre of Trichy it was observed that many people worked under
one roof but for different employers, and they leased the machines from different owners. In this
way there was no chance for the workers to organize themselves and form a block against one
employer. The majority of the workers used leased machines and the majority was subject to
bonded labour.
Working conditions
On an average the wages for male adults ranged between Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,000 per month (i.e.
Rs 38 and Rs 77 per day). It should be said that the wage level was highly variable and depended
on the quality of the polished and faceted stone, the skills of the worker, the number of stones a
worker produced per day, the level of the loan he had taken in advance, and the level of exploitation
by the employer. The workers who were members of the labour union earned more
than the workers who were not members. In the units in and around the centre of Trichy, no
female workers were found at work. Women were mainly employed in the villages or at home.
Child labourers earned around Rs 5 to Rs 20 per day, but it could even be lower than Rs 5 per day
because it depended on the level of the loan (debt) of the parents.
The working circumstances are poor with no ventilation and bad lighting. But because there was
some light, which was not always the case in the villages, (child) labourers approximately worked
14 hours per day. In the visited units no toilet and washing facilities existed. In one unit five
children were at work. The children were aged around 9 years. One boy did the process of joi-
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