I am Ravi Jayaprakash. I am the national secretary and the full-timer of YCW India. I am organizing the young workers in the district of Thiruvarur. I started to contact the young agricultural workers in Parutiyur, a village in the district of Thiruvarur from January this year.

Moreover, these workers would have work in the agricultural farms only six months in a year. Therefore, the other six months either they are unemployed or migrate to towns and cities to find work. In this situation, the 100 days job program was introduced in this village by the government and they started to work in this program. However, I discovered that they do not have the awareness about this 100 days job program and their rights while working in this program.

Therefore, the other six months either they are unemployed or migrate to towns and cities to find work. In this situation, the 100 days job program was introduced in this village by the government and they started to work in this program. However, I discovered that they do not have the awareness about this 100 days job program and their rights while working in this program.

Therefore, during the Review meeting, I raised many questions about their work in 100 days job and through collective reflections. After six months of review and follow up I could raise their awareness on their life and work situation, about the salary they receive in 100 days job and helped them discover that this salary is lees that what is prescribed. They also discovered that this salary was not enough to meet their daily needs. During this process they wanted to know more about their rights therefore, I arranged one day training on the rights of workers. Then in a Review meeting in June, the members decided that they need to develop an action to increase their wage from Rs. 50 to Rs. 80. I could also see that a few of them were motivated to take leadership in the action. I accompany them in each stage of the action in the planning, implementation and evaluation with the leader sand with the group. At the end it was a successful action and the daily wage was increased from Rs. 50 to Rs. 80.

After accompanying this action with the group, I feel very much motivated. I feel it is important to have strategies in following up the group. I also feel happy and satisfaction in my work. The workers also respect me and feel free to share with me their life. I also have a strong belief now that the young workers can develop successful action if they come together and do the action.

I learnt to contact and organize the young workers, to develop an action with clear plan and strategies and to develop leaders to commit for the action. I also learnt to lobby with the officials and this increased my confidence.

I plan to develop this action at the district level involving many groups to demand the wage increase from Rs. 80 to Rs. 100 for the workers in the 100 days job. I want to include the national action team in the planning and implementation of the next stage of this action.