After an eight-year hiatus, the Bangladesh Tea Workers’ Union is set to hold its election on November 28, with nearly 98,000 tea workers expected to cast their votes across 231 tea gardens.
The election has generated considerable excitement among workers, with more than 3,500 candidates and over 600 panels expected to contest, according to election commission and union sources.
Voting will be held to elect 15-member panchayat committees in each tea garden, including presidents and general secretaries, as well as the union’s central president and general secretary and leaders of its seven valleys.
Mahbub Hossain, deputy director of Department of Labour in Sreemangal, said the election schedule would be announced on October 30 and published on the department’s website.
Voting will continue from 8am to 4pm without any break, he said, adding that preparations, including updating voter lists, were underway to ensure a free, fair and impartial election.
The union’s seven valleys are Laskarpur, Balishira, Manu-Dhalai, Longla, Juri, Sylhet and Chittagong.
Several prominent candidates have begun preparing to contest key central leadership positions. Ram Bhajan Kaori, Raju Goala and Pankaj Kundo are among the potential contenders for president, while panels led by Nipen Pal and Paresh Kalindi are preparing to contest the general secretary’s post.
Workers said the prolonged absence of elections had contributed to stagnation in the union’s leadership.
Shyamal Baidya, panchayat president of Lakhai Chhara Tea Garden and a potential candidate, alleged that some former leaders had prioritised personal interests over workers’ welfare. He said workers would choose candidates committed to securing higher wages and better benefits.
Radheshyam Baori of Deochhara Tea Garden and Atul Kurmi of Kakia Chhara said workers wanted leaders who would push for higher daily wages, timely payment of salaries, better educational opportunities for their children and improvements in their living standards.
Under the union’s constitution, elections are supposed to be held every three years. However, the last central election took place on June 24, 2018, meaning a new committee should have been elected in 2021.