'Raising the retrenchment, layoff and closure threshold to 300 workers for prior government permission enables hire-and-fire in more than 90 per cent of the Indian workplaces. More than 12,00,000 disputes are now pending for adjudication with an average disposal period ranging from 3 to five years for more than 75 per cent of the disputes.'
Over 25 crore workers across India are set to strike against new labour codes and privatisation, potentially disrupting banking, postal, and other essential services.
'Not only jobs are not being generated, but people are also losing jobs.'
Workers' strike at Samsung Electronics plant at Sriperumbudur entered 30th day on Tuesday with no end in sight as Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the union leading the charge, claimed that its major demands are yet to be fulfilled. This is despite the company agreeing to pay a special incentive to the employees.
As the strike by Samsung Electronics employees in Sriperumbudur on the outskirts of Chennai entered its 16th day, the company on Tuesday claimed that it is paying 1.8 times of the average salary that manufacturing workers in the region are getting. "At Samsung India, the welfare of our workers is our top priority. "The average monthly salary of our full-time manufacturing workers at the Chennai plant is 1.8 times the average salary of similar workers employed at other companies in the region,"a Samsung statement said.
'...how do they consume and contribute to the GDP?'
Samsung India is willing to sign a long-term wage settlement and negotiate directly with its workers for an amicable resolution of the dispute, the company's lawyer said on Friday, terming the ongoing employees' strike at the Sriperumbudur plant "illegal". Lawyer Anand Gopalan, who is representing Samsung India in the high court of Chennai and the Kanchipuram District Court, said the company would only negotiate with its workers and not with any third-party leaders.
IPO bound HMIL, which is also from South Korea, had faced severe labour unrest for nearly a decade till the realisation -- a worker's union cannot be avoided -- dawned on it.
Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya urges state government 'to intervene for an early and amicable resolution for maintaining a positive manufacturing sector ecosystem'.
Employees were told to return to work from Monday onwards for a fresh start for improved production.
Although the company has shown willingness to talk to its workers and accept their key demands, it is CITU that is causing a roadblock to a solution.
According to CITU, around 90% of the 1,723 workers of the Sriperumbudur plant are participating in the strike. Samsung said it is ready to talk to employees and not a third party like CITU.
'Samsung declared they would not allow the presence of any trade union.' 'This is unacceptable as the rule of law in India permits employees to have a trade union.' 'So, the crux of the strike is this.'
The strike notices were given by workers' unions of various sectors such as coal, steel, oil, telecom, postal, income tax, copper, banks and insurance.
A joint forum of central trade unions has given a call for a nationwide strike on March 28 and 29, to protest against government policies affecting workers, farmers, and people. The Joint Platform of central trade unions held a meeting in Delhi on March 22, 2022, to take stock of the preparations in various states and sectors for the proposed two-day all India strike on 28-29 March 2022 against "the anti-worker, anti-farmer, anti-people and anti-national policies" of the central government, a statement said. The statement said that roadways, transport workers and electricity workers have decided to join the strike in spite of the impending threat of ESMA (Haryana and Chandigarh, respectively). Financial sectors, including banking and insurance, are joining the strike, it stated.
Along with them, ex-BJP lawmaker Ram Shakal took the oath.
Chakraborty, an ardent trade unionist and a former Rajya Sabha member, was admitted to the hospital after he tested positive for COVID-19 on July 30.
Kolkata is on the boil after the gang rape and subsequent murder of a teenager in Madhyamgram area in the northern fringe of the city. Rediff.com's Indrani Roy met the girl's father Ramshankar Jha.
Ten central trade unions on Tuesday said they are going ahead with their planned nationwide general strike on November 26 and also announced their support to a two-day farmers' agitation next week. The meeting of the Joint Platform of Central Trade Unions (CTUs) and Sectoral Independent Federations and Associations was held virtually on November 16, 2020. Unions expressed satisfaction over the tremendous response being received from workers and the people at large throughout the country to the ongoing campaign for the countrywide general strike on November 26, 2020, a joint forum statement said.
Workers rally in support of sacked employees at Manesar
Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP, Tapan Sen, on Friday termed as a 'drama' the Central Vigilance Commission referring a complaint to the Central Bureau of Investigation on alleged irregularities in use of coal blocks by some private firms.
Central trade unions have opened some successful unions for contract workers in the Ghaziabad industrial belt, breaking the myth that it is difficult to bring them under unions' fold.
'The government there at one point did not even permit migrant labourers to return...we do not want to say anything against anyone but the situation there was not handled properly'
'The only system that will work is scientific socialism where there will be minimum contradictions, and where interests of the majority are taken care of.'
Mumbai's Azad Maidan will be to be the venue for mass meetings and demonstrations for those participating in the nationwide general strike called by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions on Tuesday.
Centre of Indian Trade Unions district secretary Muthukumar said the workers were arrested when they tried to stage an agitation in front of the plant at Sriperumbudur.
Gaps in labour legislation and India's reluctance to ratify two ILO conventions are stoking disputes over trade union recognition between managements and workers.
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.
Trade union leaders in the pre-Budget consultation with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday demanded reigning in prices of essential items and increasing exemption limit on income tax to Rs 2 lakh (Rs 200,000).
Bharatiya Janata Party-backed Bhartiya Majdoor Sangh boycotted the convention, reason for which was not known immediately.
The ten trade unions are National Trades Union Congress, All India Trade Union Congress, Hind Mazdoor Sabha, Centre of Indian Trade Unions, All India United Trade Union Centre, Trade Union Coordination Centre, Self Employed Women's Association, All India Central Council of Trade Unions, Labour Progressive Federation and United Trade Union Congress.
The chief minister's political directive seems to have helped; next test will be the likely change of political guard in the state
The views of the trade unions who met the finance minister on Wednesday, run contrary to the demands of India Inc, which called for disinvestment of public sector enterprises to fund the widening fiscal deficit. They also suggested increasing corporate tax rate so that more money can be transferred from the rich to the poor.
Ten central trade unions except Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh are observing one-day general strike on Thursday to protest against various government policies.
The rash of strikes and the killing of the HR head of Pricol exactly a year after Graziono Transmissioni's CEO was killed by sacked employees indicate a tough year ahead.
The Left-leaning trade union CITU on Tuesday condemned the high-powered B K Chaturvedi Committee's call for raising fuel prices every month till they are in line with costs saying the panels' report should be outrightly rejected.
Bank strike continued for day-two on Tuesday, led by nine unions of public sector banks (PSBs) in the country, opposing government's policy to privatise the lenders. Customers will be inconvenienced to get services such as cash withdrawals, deposits, cheque clearances, remittance services. Government transactions related to treasury as well as business transactions will also be impacted. United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), an umbrella body of nine unions, had given a strike call for March 15 and 16.
The four are said to be belonging to the ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist's union outfit -- CITU, one of the 10 trade unions, which were on strike on Wednesday.
Just two years after it was revived after a long shut down, tyre maker Dunlop (India) Ltd will suspend production at its Sahaganj unit in West Bengal citing lack of working capital and drastic fall in demand.
Exasperated by frequent labour strikes, the Tamil Nadu government has decided to give public utility status to Auto components makers. A move that has left labour unions fuming since, now, they won't be able to go on strike without issuing a notice of six weeks in advance.
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