Fairtrade Story: Singaraj Sankaia
Singaraj lives on the estate with his son and daughter in law, Sasikala, and their family. For 45 years, he was a supervisor in the tea fields, a role that he enjoyed very much. He has been retired from the tea fields for ten years. He was finding retirement a little boring so he started a shop, selling biscuits and sweets to workers on the estate.
I manage my own expenditure with the pension money, I don’t have to depend on anybody else.
Pension scheme
Singaraj is benefitting from the estate pension scheme, which is part-funded by the Fairtrade Premium. His pension makes him feel ‘happy and secure’.
Healthcare
In 2017, Singaraj had a successful operation to treat cataracts in both his eyes. Working at Welbeck means Singaraj did not have to pay for this operation because of the support of Management and the Fairtrade Premium. Without this support, Singaraj would have needed to borrow money to pay for the operation.
Both of these Fairtrade Premium projects have enabled Singaraj to be financially independent and secure in his retirement.
