Bosch lifts lockout order at its Jaipur plant

Union agrees to call off hunger strike and give up go-slow action in April 13 meeting with management in return for lifting of lockout

Auto component major Bosch today said it will lift lockout order at its Jaipur plant tomorrow, which it had issued last week due to the ongoing worker unrest in the facility.

"A conciliation meeting was held on April 13, 2015 between the management and labour union supported by the Labour Secretary, wherein it was agreed that the union will not indulge in a 'go-slow' action and call off their hunger strike immediately and the company will lift the lockout with effect from first shift of April 15, 2015," Bosch Ltd said in a filing to the BSE.

The Labour Secretary has directed both parties to continue discussions for the long-term wage settlement, it added.

On April 6, Bosch had declared a lockout at its Jaipur plant due to the ongoing worker unrest in the facility.

The plant, which has a history of labour issues, was shut for a day last month also on account of a day-long strike by the labour union over wage settlement.

The lockout was declared after workers union proceeded on an illegal go-slow action since March 19, 2015, reducing output by up to 70 per cent.

Bosch also said that it does not expect an immediate impact on its deliveries to customers because of available stocks as well as production from its officers who are trained to work in production.

Elaborating further, the company said the wage settlement negotiations for the period June 2013-May 2017 have been going for more than 20 months, including intense conciliation meetings supported by the joint labour commissioner-cum-conciliation officer of Jaipur region.

Bosch Ltd manufactures various auto components, including fuel injector pumps and distributor pumps (VE pumps) at the Jaipur plant.

The company has a history of labour issues at its two plants in Jaipur and Bangalore.

Last year, workers at the company's Bangalore plant had struck work for over three months over wage settlement.

Later on, Bosch Group Chairman of the Board of Management Volkmar Denner had stated that repeated incidents of labour unrests could hurt investments in India.