Maruti to replace protesting workers at Manesar plant

With no resolution in sight to the ongoing labour tussle at Maruti Suzuki’s plant in Manesar, the company on Monday announced it would start hiring regular workers from tomorrow to replace those who had refused to sign the good conduct bond.

“The company further brought down its dependence on permanent workers who are refusing to sign the ‘good conduct bond’ and remaining absent from work at Manesar plant. The company will start fresh recruitment of regular workers from tomorrow,” MSIL said in a statement. MSIL has about 950 permanent workers, 250 apprentices and 400 trainee technicians at the facility.

The company hired another batch of 50 skilled technicians on Monday, taking the total strength of the workforce at Manesar to 1,100, including 90 engineers deputed from the Gurgaon facility and 290 supervisors.

“Maruti Suzuki will allow only those workers to resume duties at Manesar plant who will sign the bond," the statement added. So far, 95 workers have signed the bond.

Meanwhile, Haryana labour minister Shiv Charan Lal Sharma said the impasse between the workers and the management would be resolved within the next two days.

Sharma said he was waiting for the report of the state labour department and would soon take action. “The issue will be resolved in the next couple of days. My officers are preparing a solution that will be acceptable to both the company’s management and the workers,” Sharma told Business Standard. However, he added, that both the sides would have to come down from their present positions.

Sharma also criticised the management’s decision to suspend workers and said that a less severe action could have been taken. “I told the company that they could have suspended one or two people. There was no need to suspend so many workers.” During the first two days of the stand-off, Maruti had dismissed five permanent workers. It later suspended 26 permanent workers and 18 trainees on the charge of sabotaging its operations and causing quality problems.