Maruti workers take to streets against firing
18 Aug 2012 8:31 AM IST
A day after Maruti Suzuki dismissed from employment 500 workers for involvement in the riot at the company’s Manesar unit on 18 July, a protest was carried out by members of the Maruti Suzuki Trade Union on Friday. The Union demanded that Maruti officials change their decision to dismiss the ‘innocent’ workers. ‘The decision was completely biased and unfair,’ Union general secretary, Kuldeep Janghu said on Friday.
The Union took out a rally in Gurgaon, from Gaushala Ground to Mini Secretariat to protest against the move. Nearly 3,000 workers united against the announcement to fire the 500 workers made by R C Bhargava, the chairperson of Maruti Suzuki on Thursday.
The basic demand of the workers was that the Haryana police should investigate the 18 July Manesar violence amd that only workers should not be punished. Appropriate action must be taken against the Maruti management if found guilty, they said. Also, the workers wanted that the basic salary given to any employee must be at least Rs 15,000. And the policy of employing workers on contract basis should be changed and each worker should be made a permanent staff of the company.
Kuldeep Janghu said, ‘If a worker takes half-a-day off from work, his full day’s salary should not be deducted. If the worker wants to go to the rest room to freshen up, he should be permitted by the management.’
Maruti Suzuki has authorised its managers and supervisors to recruit workers they consider trustworthy as part of a new human resource policy aimed at building confidence between the management and workers, and restarting operations at the Manesar plant.
‘We have sent notices terminating services of workers in whom the company has lost confidence.
These workers have violated the terms of the good conduct bond that was signed by them last year. Some of these workers also have criminal charges against them,’ said R C Bhargava, chairman of Maruti Suzuki.
On Thursday, the company announced that it would restart production at the plant from 21 August, 2012 and produce only 150 cars daily to begin with.
LEFT UNIONS PAN FIRM
Left trade unions CITU and AITUC on Friday criticised Maruti Suzuki for deciding to dismiss 500 regular workers before reopening its plant in Gurgaon and demanded Haryana government’s intervention to ensure that the decision is reversed.
Condemning the decision, CITU General Secretary Tapas Sen said they opposed the violence at the Maruti Suzuki Plant on 18 July in which the General Manager of the factory was killed and many injured.
‘We demanded a comprehensive independent enquiry into the entire incident including the antecedents to punish the guilty as well as the provocateurs behind the violence. But, instead the state government launched a witch-hunt targeting the workers and began their mass scale arrests,’ Sen said. He said more than 154 workers were put behind bars including some who were not even present on that fateful day. ‘In such a context, summary dismissal of 500 regular workers is tantamount to inflicting capital punishment on them in respect of their livelihood before the guilt is proved. Not only that termination of such a big number of workers in a factory like Maruti Suzuki statutorily requires obtaining prior permission from the Government.
‘Government of Haryana must come out clear on whether the Maruti Suzuki management sought prior permission of such mass scale termination of workers and whether the government has granted such permission and if granted on what ground,’ he said. The government must intervene and compel the management to reverse the decision, he said. The union also demanded that the Central government should act strongly to uphold the Central Statute which stands ‘outraged by the unlawful mass dismissal’.
AITUC’s Gurudas Dasgupta described the management decision as “draconian” and said it should be an eye-opener for the central government which is pursuing policies of liberalisation.
He said if the government does not intervene, the union will stage a march to Parliament along with workers.
The Union took out a rally in Gurgaon, from Gaushala Ground to Mini Secretariat to protest against the move. Nearly 3,000 workers united against the announcement to fire the 500 workers made by R C Bhargava, the chairperson of Maruti Suzuki on Thursday.
The basic demand of the workers was that the Haryana police should investigate the 18 July Manesar violence amd that only workers should not be punished. Appropriate action must be taken against the Maruti management if found guilty, they said. Also, the workers wanted that the basic salary given to any employee must be at least Rs 15,000. And the policy of employing workers on contract basis should be changed and each worker should be made a permanent staff of the company.
Kuldeep Janghu said, ‘If a worker takes half-a-day off from work, his full day’s salary should not be deducted. If the worker wants to go to the rest room to freshen up, he should be permitted by the management.’
Maruti Suzuki has authorised its managers and supervisors to recruit workers they consider trustworthy as part of a new human resource policy aimed at building confidence between the management and workers, and restarting operations at the Manesar plant.
‘We have sent notices terminating services of workers in whom the company has lost confidence.
These workers have violated the terms of the good conduct bond that was signed by them last year. Some of these workers also have criminal charges against them,’ said R C Bhargava, chairman of Maruti Suzuki.
On Thursday, the company announced that it would restart production at the plant from 21 August, 2012 and produce only 150 cars daily to begin with.
LEFT UNIONS PAN FIRM
Left trade unions CITU and AITUC on Friday criticised Maruti Suzuki for deciding to dismiss 500 regular workers before reopening its plant in Gurgaon and demanded Haryana government’s intervention to ensure that the decision is reversed.
Condemning the decision, CITU General Secretary Tapas Sen said they opposed the violence at the Maruti Suzuki Plant on 18 July in which the General Manager of the factory was killed and many injured.
‘We demanded a comprehensive independent enquiry into the entire incident including the antecedents to punish the guilty as well as the provocateurs behind the violence. But, instead the state government launched a witch-hunt targeting the workers and began their mass scale arrests,’ Sen said. He said more than 154 workers were put behind bars including some who were not even present on that fateful day. ‘In such a context, summary dismissal of 500 regular workers is tantamount to inflicting capital punishment on them in respect of their livelihood before the guilt is proved. Not only that termination of such a big number of workers in a factory like Maruti Suzuki statutorily requires obtaining prior permission from the Government.
‘Government of Haryana must come out clear on whether the Maruti Suzuki management sought prior permission of such mass scale termination of workers and whether the government has granted such permission and if granted on what ground,’ he said. The government must intervene and compel the management to reverse the decision, he said. The union also demanded that the Central government should act strongly to uphold the Central Statute which stands ‘outraged by the unlawful mass dismissal’.
AITUC’s Gurudas Dasgupta described the management decision as “draconian” and said it should be an eye-opener for the central government which is pursuing policies of liberalisation.
He said if the government does not intervene, the union will stage a march to Parliament along with workers.
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