The Ministry of Coal has clarified that the world's largest miner of the fossil fuel aims to conclude a wage pact for its non-executive workforce at the earliest.
Coal India Ltd. has held five meetings under the National Coal Wage Agreement-XI so far, a statement from the ministry said. The negotiations for a “mutually agreeable” pact are in progress.
The company, the statement said, has “successfully concluded” the previous three wage agreements. “Coal India hopes to quickly seal the wage pact this time as well.”
The statement also termed any “report contrary to the above statement” as “factually incorrect and one-sided”.
On July 5, Bloomberg reported that a key trade union at Coal India has warned workers may strike over delays in finalising salary hikes. Talks held on July 1 between Coal India and workers' unions 'failed to reach any agreement over a pay deal, the report said quoting Sudhir Ghurde, who represents Akhil Bharatiya Khadan Mazdoor Sangh, one of the leading unions at the meeting.
Workers, according to the Bloomberg report, have sought a 47% increase in wages against the earlier demand for a 50% hike. Coal India has offered a 3% raise.
Shares of Coal India fell nearly 2.5%, the steepest intraday decline in this week so far. The stock closed 0.4% lower. Of the 27 analysts tracking the company, 22 maintain a ‘buy', two recommend a ‘hold' and three suggest a ‘sell', according to Bloomberg data. The average of the 12-month target price implies an upside of 15.1%.
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