Maruti losing Rs 40-cr production a day to strike

Maruti Suzuki on Tuesday said it was losing production worth Rs 40 crore every day due to strike by workers at its plant in Manesar in Haryana. The strike entered its fourth day on Tuesday.

The company, 54 per cent owned by Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan, has lost more than 3,600 units in production so far.

“Our initial estimate suggests we are losing Rs 40 crore a day. We cannot shift production to our Gurgaon plant as it is already operating at more than 100 per cent capacity,” said Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) Chairman R C Bhargava.

While dealers have stocks for over 28 days, the delivery of some popular diesel models is likely to be delayed. The waiting period for popular vehicles, including the diesel versions of Swift and DZire, is expected to go beyond six months.

“Consumers were ready to wait for four months for Swift diesel, but we have not been informed by Maruti how long will it take now. We are telling consumers the delivery will take at least five months,” said a New Delhi-based dealer.

Diesel models account for 20-25 per cent of Maruti’s sales. Along with SX4, exports of A-star will also be hit by the strike. However, there will be a little less impact on Swift and DZire as they are also produced at the Gurgaon plant.

Meanwhile, the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) is asking other auto sector unions to support the Manesar workers.

“There is no progress. Local unions are meeting for solidarity action. We will decide in a day or two what action is required,” said AITUC Secretary V L Sachdeva.

Sachdeva says the last resort will be a token strike of all key auto unions in the Manesar-Gurgoan-Bawal belt. AITUC had organised a similar strike a few years ago in over 70 auto companies, including Hero Honda and Maruti Suzuki.

The workers are unhappy over MSIL’s refusal to recognise the new union, Maruti Suzuki Employees Union, formed by a section of workers at the Manesar unit. The company claims the new union has shown no evidence that it can get support from the rest of the workers.

“The whole thing is premature. On Friday they applied for registration and on Saturday they went on an illegal strike. Anybody can form a union, but you need to show support,” said Bhargava.

On sacking of 11 employees yesterday, the company said similar action could not be avoided depending on the situation at the factory. “They are responsible for an illegal strike. There is a law on the subject. There will be no pay for workers during the period of the strike,” he said.

On the impact of the strike, he said, “There will certainly be a loss of market share if supplies do not happen, but the impact will be less. Many companies are not selling as much as they used to and so the market has not moved anyway. Customers will have to wait longer for their cars but I hope they will try to understand the situation we are in today.” MSIL has a 45 per cent share of the domestic market.