In the meantime, according to sources close to tripartite negotiations between the company management, striking workers and state government, the MSI is understood to have made it clear that it would not reinstate the 11 sacked workers.
The company, however, is understood to have proposed the formation of a governing council of representatives of workers at its different plants that will also take part in charting out company policy in order to avoid labour unrest in future.
“Public meetings will be held tomorrow (Monday) at different factories in the Gurgaon-Manesar belt. On Tuesday, there will be a two-hour tool-down strike in about 60-65 factories in the region,” AITUC Secretary D L Sachdev told reporters.
Sachdev, along with AITUC General Secretary Gurudas Dasgupta, had met Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda twice last week over the strike at MSI’s plant. Different workers’ unions, including those from Hero Honda, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India and Rico Auto, have been supporting the strike at MSI’s plant.
Around 2,000 workers at MSI’s Manesar plant have been on strike since June 4, demanding recognition of a new union—Maruti Suzuki Employees Union (MSEU)—formed by those working at the Manesar plant, among other things.
Cracking the whip, the company fired 11 workers for allegedly inciting others to go on strike. Their reinstatement is also being demanded by the striking workers. “The company has made it clear that there is no question of reinstating them,” a source said. No work-no pay policy will also be enforced, although it may not necessarily strictly apply the eight days’ salary deduction for every day of strike.
In order to avoid such labour unrest in future, the company has discussed with the state government its plan to set up a governing council of workers that would have members from all facilities across different plants.
On the eighth day of the strike on Saturday, the loss to the company mounted to about Rs 390 crore for 7,800 units. The factory was closed on Sunday. MSEU General Secretary Shiv Kumar claimed that the company management has agreed to reinstate five out of the 11 sacked workers, but the union is demanding that all of them be taken back.
On the issue of recognition of the union, Kumar said the management has informed the workers that it can be considered.
