Abandoned Nokia workers release film titled 'Dis-Connecting People'

Film documents voices of workers, who have lost their jobs

Workers at Nokia's Chennai factory who have lost their jobs post the Microsoft-Nokia deal have released a new film titled 'Dis-Connecting People'. The film documents the voices of the workers, who have worked with the firm for years.

 

The plant, which is one of the largest facilities of Nokia worldwide, employed 8,000 people directly and another 20,000 indirectly.

 

Last year Microsoft decided to acquire Nokia's devices and service businesses and the transaction was completed in April 2014. But the Chennai plant was kept away from the deal, since it was caught in an income tax dispute. The income tax department alleged Nokia needs to pay around Rs 21,000 crore and said unless it pay the money the stay on the factory will stay. 

 

The Tamil Nadu government's sales tax department also slapped a Rs 2,400 crore tax notice on the company. Against this backdrop, the fate of the facility continues to remain uncertain, though it entered into a “service agreement” for one year which is for “limited period”. 

 

Nokia has already announced VRS in the factory and over 5,000 workers have opted for it. People who have opted for the scheme say they “dont have a choice but to go for the Scheme”.

 

The workers alleged that nobody, especially the Centre and State governments, have come forward to help them. As their voices remained muted in the battle, the workers released the 35.18 minute movie titled “Dis-Connecting People”, a pun on Nokia's tag of “Connecting People”.

 

Dozens of workers, majority of them women, were interviewed and shared their experience about what the work meant to them. A widow in her early 20s said that she and her two year old son are dependent on the job. Some of the men said they joined the company after HSC and didn't pursue higher studies thinking they will stay with Nokia. Others said they have worked for Nokia for seven years and only know how to assemble mobile phones. 

 

Finnish Company Nokia set up the mobile phone assembling plant at Sriperumbadur, Tamil Nadu in 2005.

 

Attracted by the tax concessions offered under Special Economic Zone Act 2005, resource subsidies and an army of cheap labour, Nokia found it profitable to assemble phones in India and sell them globally. In just 5 years the plant produced 500 million phones. It hired over 12,000 workers, majority of them being young women.