CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday (July 7) announced a 25 percent salary hike for employees of the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC), while warning that staff found collecting excess amounts from customers would face dismissal from service.
Announcing the decision after a TASMAC Board meeting at the Secretariat on Monday (July 6), Prohibition and Excise Minister K Vignesh said the salary revision was intended to address employees' grievances and eliminate the practice of charging an additional Rs 10 per liquor bottle.
The Minister said TASMAC employees had cited expenditure on shop rent, transportation and electricity charges as reasons for collecting excess amounts from customers.
“The government will address these issues. There is no justification for collecting excess money from customers. Any employee found overcharging will face dismissal,” Vignesh said.
Under the revised pay structure, the monthly salary of assistant salesmen has been increased from Rs 14,340 to Rs 17,925, salesmen from Rs 15,530 to Rs 19,413, and supervisors from Rs 17,850 to Rs 22,313.
The Minister said the salary revision would result in an additional annual expenditure of Rs 110.74 crore, taking the total annual expenditure on salaries and employee benefits to Rs 553.72 crore.
He added that, on the direction of Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, the government was also examining the introduction of a medical insurance scheme for TASMAC employees and their families.
Vignesh also warned operators of FL3 bars that licences would be cancelled if allowed to persons below the age of 21. He ruled out any proposal to increase the retail price of liquor sold through TASMAC outlets.
The Minister said around 30 to 40 employees had already been dismissed for overcharging customers, reiterating that the government would adopt a zero-tolerance approach to such practices.