Workers at Swiss-based firm plants resort to strike over wages

TE Connectivity (previously Tyco Electronics), a provider of connectivity systems and solutions, said the workers at its Bangalore manufacturing plants have resorted to 'unlawful strike', demanding a wage raise.

In a statement on Friday, the Switzerland-based company said the workers stopped work completely from 7 March without notice and provocation. "The management and the union have been in talks to arrive at a wage increase agreement. While the discussions were still under way, the workers resorted to complete stoppage of work in the form of sit-in and tool-down strike," the statement said. This amounts to a completely illegal and unlawful strike, it added

TE connectivity, which owns seven manufacturing plants in India, including five in Bangalore and two in Pune, employs 4,500 people in India, including the R&D staff.

The plants in Bangalore are estimated to have 2,000 employees.

"TE Connectivity India is committed to reopening the Bangalore plants on a priority basis provided the employees restore complete normalcy and reach an early amicable settlement through discussions," the company said.

In 2010-11 (it follows Oct-Sept accounting cycle), TE Connectivity reported revenues of Rs 1400 crore from India. Around 70 per cent of the products manufactured by the company out of India are exported to global markets.