Apprentice Board official visits Toyota on union's complaint

Amid the stand-off between employees and management, a state Apprentice Board official today inspected Toyota Kirloskar Motors plants at Bidadi near here following a complaint from workers union that apprentices were being engaged in production without proper training.
"Yes, Apprentice Board did come to TKM's plant as a part of a routine visit," the company said in response to a query.
Toyota Kirloskar Motors Employees Union had made the complaint yesterday, as the deadlock over the lockout at two plants continued with employees refusing to sign good conduct undertaking and the management insisting that they do so.
"We had visited and inspected Toyota Kirloskar plants on receiving the complaint from employees union of the company. They have made about eight charges regarding apprentices not being treated well, engaging them in the line of production without proper training, making them work long hours..," Joint Director of Employment and Training and Joint Apprentice Advisor Bangalore Division Shivalinga Murthy told PTI.

"We have spoken to few boys there...; but we will need relevant documents and proof on the same from complainants. We have asked the union people to meet us. They will be meeting us on this regard," he added.
TKMEU President Prasanna Kumar said "we had complained to the apprentice board a couple of months ago. Yesterday again we complained to them, they visited to inspect the plant."

He said apprentices are being engaged in the line of production without any proper training and are made to work till 10 pm which is against the rules. "There are issues and we have complained to the authorities on it."

Stating that the union will be meeting the officials to give them information they have sought, Prasanna Kumar said "...There are about 1,700 apprentices working now."
Toyota Kirloskar Motor, the subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corp of Japan, had on March 16 declared a lockout, following the failure of talks between the management and the union over wage negotiation. The union is demanding a wage hike of Rs 4,000 as against Rs 3,050 proposed by the management.
The deadlock took a new twist on Monday after a lockout at two plants was lifted, with employees not resuming work as they objected to signing a good conduct undertaking as demanded by the company.