After a year disrupted by labour unrests at its Manesar facility, the country’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) has hiked wages by 50% for workers at its Gurgaon unit.
According to the wage settlement agreement signed between the company and the Gurgaon-based Maruti Udyog Kamgar Union (MUKU), permanent workers at the Gurgaon unit would be given an increment of Rs 18,000 in their monthly salary spread over a period of three years. The wage agreement is effective retrospectively from April 1, 2012.
Confirming the development, Kuldeep Jhangu, general secretary, MUKU said, “The wage negotiations were settled amicably. It is a historic agreement. Apart from the increment, a lot of benefits have been given to workers by the company.”
The hike in wages assumes significant especially when it is compared to the previous settlement in 2009. MUKU had secured a six% raise for its members in 2009. At that point in time, the average hike was in the range of about Rs 7,000 spread over three years and in the first year of settlement the workers only got 50% of the Rs 7,000-hike, which was about Rs 3,500.
There are 2032 permanent workers at MSIL’s Gurgaon unit. Their average salary ranges between Rs 35,000 and Rs 39, 500 per month currently. Of the Rs 18,000 increment which would be given over a period of three years, workers can avail of 80% of the increase or around Rs 14,400 in the first year itself. Post the hike, a permanent worker who was earning an average salary of Rs 35,000 will take home Rs 53,000 every month.
Besides, the company has doled out a host of incentives ranging from increased travel allowance of Rs 1200 to improved medical coverage. The management has doubled medical coverage of a permanent worker to Rs 5500. “An important initiative is that the training period for junior technicians has been reduced to two years from the earlier three years”, Jhangu added.
The management has been trying to address concerns of workers in the company post instances of labour unrests at its second unit. A series of violent standoffs at the Manesar plant had crippled production for most of last year. Production loss to the company due to the strikes and the lock-out declared in July this year stand at over110,000 units.
Though wage agreements have now been inked with the workers at the Gurgaon unit, settlement is pending at Manesar due to the absence of union representatives. Office bearers of the Manesar-based Maruti Suzuki Workers’ Union have been arrested by the police in connection with the arson in the factory which had resulted in the death of a senior management executive.
The Manesar workers had demanded wage hikes of Rs 15,000-16,000 per month. The management had made a counter offer of an increase of Rs 10,500 in salary. Negotiations awere at an advanced stage when violence erupted over the suspension of a worker on July 18.