<p></p><p>KOLLAM: The cashew industry which faces the double whammy of stiff international competition and the wage issue in the domestic front has put a question mark on the livelihood of around three lakh workers in the sector, of which a majority are women. 80 per cent of the cashew factories have been shut down for over a month as many company owners found it unsustainable to carry out their business.<br></p> <p>This includes the largest cashew exporter in the country, VLC group. Another prominent factory group shut down their factories the next day after paying the new wages.Factory owners affiliated to the Kerala Cashew Processors and Exporters Association alleged that the decision taken by the government to bring into effect the 35 per cent hike in wages was a unilateral decision made to please the trade union leaders who see the workers as vote banks.The association had filed a writ petition (WPC 5767/2015) in the Kerala HC against the decision on February 23. The hearing of the case is expected on April 6.According to sector experts, the so-called model employers in the industry such as the KSCDC and Capex are accruing loss every year.An RTI query had revealed that the operational loss of KSCDC, an organisation run by trade union leaders in their capacity as chairman and board of directors, in 2012-13 alone amounts to Rs 78.98 crore.<br></p> <p>Disclaimer: We respect your thoughts and views! But we need to be judicious while moderating your comments. All the comments will be moderated by the NIE editorial. Abstain from posting comments that are obscene, defamatory or inflammatory, and do not indulge in personal attacks. Try to avoid outside hyperlinks inside the comment. Help us delete comments that do not follow these guidelines.<br></p><p></p>