Include nursing, engineering diploma holders under Minimum Wages Act: CEAI

Engineering professionals' body CEAI on Tuesday said it has urged the government to include paramedical, nursing and engineering diploma holders under the Minimum Wages Act.

"The prevalent Minimum Wages Act in the country covers and protects only skilled and semi-skilled workers, including drivers, office boys and industrial workers only," the Consulting Engineers Association of India (CEAI) said in a statement.

In a letter written to the Union labour and employment ministry as well as the Delhi government, K K Kapila, chairman of CEAI's business and policy committee, has urged them to include paramedical, nursing and engineering diploma holders under the Minimum Wages Act, the statement said.

CEAI, which has about 300 members, represents the Indian engineering consultancy professionals at the International Federation of Consulting Engineers.

"The present Minimum Wages Act in the country covers and protects only skilled and semi-skilled workers, including drivers, office boys and industrial workers only. Presently, no such Minimum Wages Act for nursing, paramedical, and engineering diploma holder staff.

"As a consequence, these educated and degree holder staff are presently being exploited across the nation especially by the private sector," Kapila said.

Despite various court judgments and orders related to wages and working conditions of nurses and paramedical staff in private hospitals, no steps have been taken to protect them from exploitation, Kapila said.

"To protect their interests, the paramedical and engineering diploma holders should be included under the Minimum Wages Act. The wages of these professionals should be higher at least by Rs 5,000 than the one prescribed for the other category of Minimum Wages Act," Kapila said.