In what seems to be a softening of stance, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) has decided not to take any immediate steps to de-recognise the newly instituted Maruti Suzuki Workers' Union (MSWU) of the Manesar unit.
According to sources close to the development, the newly formed body -- Maruti Suzuki Workers' Union -- has submitted a list of about 20 demands to the management for consideration while finalising the three-year wage settlement agreement.
Cops name them as main accused in violence at Manesar plant, in which a senior official was killed.
Suzuki, who is in India on a visit, told representatives of Maruti Udyog Kamgar Union, the elected union of Maruti Suzuki India that the management of the Indian arm would not accept any indiscipline in the company.
The new body -- Maruti Suzuki Workers' Union -- has received its registration number from the Haryana Labour Department this week and the company has also decided to recognise it for any future negotiations at the plant.
Expressing solidarity with agitating Maruti Suzuki workers, about a hundred protesters from various trade unions staged a demonstration outside Haryana Bhawan on Thursday, seeking the government's intervention for reversing the suspension and dismissal of workers by MSI.
Workers, union leaders in hiding amid spate of arrests; Japanese nationals among 100 injured; killed person identified as HR general manager
Leaders of Maruti Suzuki Workers Union could not be contacted for their comments on future course of action.
While the workers have decided to retain the previously proposed name Maruti Suzuki Employees' Union, a new crop of leaders have emerged to take forward their cause.
Central trade unions have questioned Maruti Suzuki's decision to terminate the services of 500 of its permanent workers, alleging not just violation of the Industrial Disputes Act, but also immaturity on the management's part in failing to arrive at a peaceful settlement of the dispute.
Supporting the all India strike called by 11 trade unions, Suzuki Motorcycle India Employee Union President Anil Kumar said: "As many as 27 workers unions of different factories in the Gurgaon, Manesar, Dharuhera and up to Bawal have agreed to go on strike for a day. So, there will be no production at our plant tomorrow."
The union is organising a protest rally this afternoon at Gurgaon against the sacking, apart from making other demands.
As the strike at its Manesar plant entered the fifth day on Wednesday, the country's largest car-maker Maruti Suzuki India said there was no question of accepting the demands of the workers.
However, it has added some stiff riders -- the union cannot be affiliated to any political party or have outsiders as members.
The company has in the meantime said the plant will remain closed.
After the July 18 violence at the Manesar plant in which one senior executive was killed, the company had fired 546 workers.
Hit by recurrent labour unrest at its Manesar unit in Haryana, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) on Thursday said the company would introspect on whether an affiliated union with a pro-business approach and mature leadership would benefit the company.
It may not be a war cry yet, but the voice is definitely getting shriller.
Suzuki Motor Corporation Chairman Osamu Suzuki has rejected an appeal by the Gurgaon unit of the Maruti Udyog Kamgar Union to reinstate the 500 workers who were sacked by Maruti Suzuki's management for their alleged involvement in the violence at the company's Manesar plant on July 18, which left one dead and several injured. The facility was locked out for about a month.
Workers rally in support of sacked employees at Manesar
The sacked workers have constituted a seven-member provisional working committee.
In the morning, shares of Maruti Suzuki India were trading 0.87 per cent down at Rs 1,216.95 apiece on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Looking at how Bollywood has dealt with dissent and trade union strikes in films over the years.
According to sources in the know, nearly 25,000 workers from Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India, Suzuki Powertrain India, Gurgaon-based Maruti Udyog Kamgar Union, Suzuki Motorcycle India, Sona Koyo Steering Systems, etc, filed a memorandum before Deputy Commissioner P C Meena.
The clout of Aituc and other unions in Haryana's automobile heartland will depend crucially on whether they manage to get a foothold in the country's largest car company.
One person was killed and at least 40 were injured on Wednesday in a clash between workers and the managerial staff at the Maruti Suzuki India's Manesar plant in Gurgaon, forcing stoppage of work.
The latest round of violence in Manesar brings into sharp focus how Maruti could have done better in terms of industrial relations management.
The Centre has, however, retained its proposal to curb flash strikes as workers in all factories will be required to give employers a strike notice of at least two weeks after the Bill becomes a law.
The violence on August 18, 2012 broke out over wage issues when a group of employees allegedly torched a section of MSIL facility which claimed the life of Dev, a resident of South Delhi's Malviya Nagar.
The strike, however, had no impact on production of auto majors Maruti Suzuki India, Hero MotoCorp, Honda Cars India, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors and Hyundai Motors India as their plants in various parts of the country functioned normally.
Employers' refusal to recognise TUs has caused industrial tiffs.
She added 148 workers from Maruti Suzuki had been imprisoned for two years without bail, on charges of killing a plant manager.
The 30-share Sensex ended lower by 46 points at 27,842 and the 50-share Nifty slipped 17 points to trade at 8,378.
Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh passed away at the age of 92 on Thursday. He will be given a state funeral with full state honors at Nigambodh Ghat on Saturday. Singh served as Prime Minister from 2004 to 2014 and was known for his role in India's economic reforms. Leaders from across the political spectrum paid their respects to the departed leader, highlighting his contributions to the nation.
After a year of industrial unrest, the big boys of the automobile industry in the Gurgaon-Manesar belt are set to initiate negotiations to settle wage agreements.
The violence at Maruti Suzuki India's Manesar plant in July was not instigated from outside but was due to internal issues between management and workers, according to the chargesheet filed by the special investigation team (SIT) formed to probe it.
Of the 18 other ex-workers, who had been convicted of various other offences like violence, rioting and attempt to murder, four have been given a sentence of 5 years.
Auto component makers in India are bracing for a tough time. High absenteeism among workers owing to Covid-19, shortages of critical parts, and temporary closures of plants by automobile manufacturers have thrown a spanner in the works for the Rs 3.2-trillion sector, which derives 60 per cent of its revenues from automobile original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), with the balance split equally between replacement demand and exports. Car market leader Maruti Suzuki India on Saturday said it was extending the maintenance shutdown, which was from May 1 to 9, till May 16, "keeping in view the current pandemic situation". Some activities will continue in the plants.
This crisis has arisen just as demand in India's auto sector started seeing some sort of revival after the nationwide lockdown in March/April.
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