Samsung India plant standoff set to intensify amid worker protests

The fresh standoff between employees and the Samsung India management at the company’s Sriperumbudur plant is expected to intensify from Monday, with around 1,000 workers, backed by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), along with their family members, set to hold a massive hunger strike at Sunguvarchatram.

 

The employees' demands mainly include the reinstatement of three suspended workers, who are key members of the newly formed Samsung India Workers' Union, backed by the CITU. “A mass protest will be held at Sunguvarchatram, along with our families, demanding the withdrawal of the suspension of workers,” said E. Muthukumar, Samsung India Workers' Union president and CITU Kancheepuram district secretary.

 

Around 500 employees out of the total 1,750 have been staging a sit-in protest on the premises of the consumer electronics goods factory at Sriperumbudur in Kancheepuram district for almost two weeks now.

 

This comes after the company indicated that it has filed an official complaint with government authorities against certain employees.

 

"A section of our workers are engaged in an illegal strike within the Chennai factory premises, while most of our dedicated workers continue to ensure that production remains uninterrupted. We have filed official complaints with the relevant authorities against certain employees who have violated company policy. At Samsung, we are compliant with all applicable laws," the company said in a statement.

 

The company indicated that its production was not affected by the protests.

 

The current protests come after a 37-day strike at the Sriperumbudur plant that ended on October 17, involving around 1,000 workers. At that time, the workers were demanding the recognition of their union and a wage increase.

 

Government officials have also intervened in the current dispute. However, both parties could not find a solution, even after a meeting on Friday.

 

The unit is crucial for Samsung’s India operations, as it manufactures refrigerators, televisions, and washing machines and reportedly accounted for a fifth of the South Korean electronics manufacturer's $12 billion in Indian sales in 2022-23.