Happy Labor Day to everyone—especially to the sahujis who are currently celebrating from their infinity pools while their staff wonder if their salary will clear before the landlord knocks. Every year, our trade unions, from the factory majdoors to our pampered sarkari karmachaaris, march through the streets in a sea of red flags to celebrate Majdoor Diwas. But let’s be honest: the only thing being "celebrated" is the successful exploitation of the Nepali worker.
The Union Leader’s Mansion
Most of our old-school political parties have more sister organizations than a soap opera has plot twists. Each has its own trade union, led by "revolutionary" bosses who are suspiciously wealthy. These union leaders have mastered the art of the "mili-juli" shake-down. They use the workers for mass rallies and political extortion, shutting down industries until the sahuji cuts a private check. The result? The union leader builds a four-storey house on the Bagmati, while the worker returns to a moldy room with broken plumbing.
The Minimum Wage Myth
The government says the minimum wage is nearly 20K. That’s a cute bedtime story. In the real world, our nurses in private hospitals are grinding for 10 to 15K, and sales girls in glitzy departmental stores are lucky to see 12. Then we have the media houses—the "watchdogs" of society—where reporters haven't been paid in months, or even years. Apparently, in Nepal, you can pay your electricity bill with "exposure" and "integrity." How do these people survive? They don’t; they just wait for their turn to join the 500,000 youth fleeing this rigged economy every year.
Range Rovers and Peanuts
It’s a beautiful sight: a billionaire byapari driving a Range Rover through the potholes of Kathmandu, warning the government that investigating tax evasion will "destroy the economy." They boast about employing thousands, yet those thousands can’t even afford a second-hand Pulsar while the boss vacations in Venice. Our business moguls invest billions in five-star hotels and private hospitals, but when it comes to payroll, they suddenly develop amnesia. They want to recover their entire investment in three years, treating their staff like a "cost" to be minimized rather than the engine of their wealth.
The Balen Hope
We don’t need politically affiliated unions whose primary job is to act as a protection racket for the parties. We need actual labor rights. For decades, "Socialist" and "Communist" governments treated workers like stage props for their rallies. They didn't care about the moldy rooms or the starvation wages; they just wanted the numbers for the street protest.
We aren't against business. We are against the shady, circular economy of greed where the same five families own the banks, the insurance, and the hospitals, while the worker barely makes enough to buy a plate of momo. It's time for the government—hopefully with some Balen-style spine—to stop the extortion and start the enforcement. Pay the workers, or sell the Range Rover.
Jai Nepal!