Across the road from gate-2 of Maruti Suzuki India Limited's Manesar factory, around 100 workers sit

underneath a tent in protest. They have now been here for over two weeks. "The media is nowhere to be seen. The ones who come, only speak to the company people and leave,"

In June, Maruti workers demanded for a union but the management asked them to join the union affiliated to the Gurgaon plant. Agitation went on for some suspended colleagues to be taken back, who weren't, which lead to a 13-day strike. The strike ended after the company took back the workers, but no decision was taken on the formation of a union. Soon afterwards, there were large scale incidents of sabotage. So, in order to ensure product quality, the company insisted the workers in signing a 'Good Conduct Bond,' which got refused.

Company suffered from a loss of - at least Rs 500 crore (Rs 5 billion) so far by one account. Reports suggest that workers at the company's Gurgaon plant are also thinking of striking in solidarity with their Manesar brethren. So Maruti would rather bleed cash than give in. Politicized Unions; RC Bhargava, chairman of Maruti Suzuki India, described the present stand-off as 'political'. Moreover, companies have been bestowed rights under Indian law, which stipulate that they can essentially decide on whom they decide to talk to or negotiate with.

In April 2009, at Hyundai Motor India in Tamil Nadu, workers went on an eighteen-day strike to demand recognition of the employees' union. Tire maker MRF's Arakkonam unit was closed for 185 days in 2009. Its workers subsequently went on strike in October 2010 as well as June 2011.

Auto industry uses cheaper, contract labour, often comprising of up to fifty per cent of the workforce, which inturn decreases costs for the auto maker by as much as fifty per cent Enjoy the benefits of having greater autonomy in choosing when to lay-off workers in times of a slump

"We don't have to deal with the workers since our point of contact is only the HR firm." says a senior official
Workers at the Maruti plant say the working conditions between the permanent and contractual workers differ vastly.

 Maruti employs close to 2,500 workers, of which 1,100 are

permanent and the rest consist of workers on contract, apprenticeship and training. According to Shiv Kumar, president, Maruti Suzuki Employee Union , an unskilled contract worker is paid Rs 5,500 a month and a skilled contract worker gets Rs 7,000; a permanent worker's pay is around Rs 18,000. In Haryana, the minimum wage of an unskilled worker is fixed at Rs 4,348.A contract worker is not entitled to medical benefits that a permanent worker gets, or the bus service, again which only the permanent worker can use. Even difference exists, between the uniform of a permanent and contract worker.

Workers say working conditions at the Maruti plant are, in general, 'difficult'. The eight-hour shift that they are required to work usually gets extended by an hour Out of 30-minute lunch break, ten minutes goes in travelling to the canteen. A seven-minute break is given for tea and using the bathroom. Going on leave becomes almost impossible as Rs 1,500 is deducted for every day on casual leave from their salary.

Last year, we exceeded the targets by working more in the morning and evening. For every hour that we worked extra, we were paid Rs 20. What part did we get of the profit that the company earned by exceeding the targets?" wonders factory worker Nehra.

o o

Striking for a union was the only option left to them. According to Tapan Mitra, head of Human resources at Apollo Tyres , increased communication between workers and management, and also trust and confidence between the 'white and blue collars' would ensure minimum friction in any company. Many times the HR department of the company doesn't address the grievances of the workers.

There are laws to ensure that the rights of the contract laborers are protected but they are seldom implemented. The labor law mandates that any company that has to employ contract labor needs to obtain a license from the labour department. The labor department can cancel the license if the rights of the contract laborers are abused. But, these laws are very rarely implemented," says Sanjay Upadhyaya, fellow at the VV Giri National Labor Institute,

 The

strike a ended on oct 21 with an agreement to bring back most of the sack hands but with no word on the union the workers wanted to form

According to the agreement, the Maruti management will take back 64 permanent workers who had been sacked during the strike and production will resume tomorrow The fate of 30 other permanent workers, who were suspended, will be decided later as cases against them were serious. Enquiry and disciplinary proceedings will be initiated against them as per rules. The enquiry will be completed within a period of 10 days, The management and Manesar workers have agreed to set up a committee for grievance redress. A labour welfare committee will also be formed to promote good relations between the management and workers

The company has also agreed to arrange for transport for the workers in accordance with their shift timings. The workers at Suzuki Powertrain India Limited and Suzuki Motorcycle India Private Limited will also resume work tomorrow

Trade union leader Sonu Gujjar quits with Rs 40 lakh payout

By oct 19,30 suspended workers at Maruti's Manesar plant, including their two leaders Sonu Gujjar and Shiv Kumar, quit the company, taking home amounts ranging between Rs 16 lakh and Rs 40 lakh The remaining 28, resigned and took home settlement amounts of around Rs 16 lakh. At the time of the (strike) settlement, the 30 of us had decided we would stick together whatever the consequences. When Sonu and Shiv resigned despite our reservations, we also followed suit, says Rishi Pal,a suspended worker Both the union leaders were unreachable, with 27-year-old Gujjar, who had emerged as an unlikely leader of the agitation with his diminutive frame and soft voice, reported to have moved out lock, stock and barrel, according to his erstwhile compatriots who went to check on him

Workers are planning criminal case against Gujjar and Kumar The quiet exit of these 30 workers has left other workers shellshocked since they had forfeited wages for at least 74 days during the 59 days of strike since June., They are traitors! This has caused an irreparable damage to the workers' union movement, which may be nipped in the bud by the immoral acts of a few self-proclaimed leaders," said SS Yadav, president of the Suzuki Powertrain India Private Ltd Employees Union It's unfortunate that a few leaders have accepted money and fallen prey to the practices of multinational companies. Though it is an isolated incident, the damaging repercussions will hurt the trade union movement for a long time."

Shy, modest and diminutive, his visage does not appear that of a leader To observers, Gujjar hardly looks the archetypal firebrand trade union leader. he and his band of 900 or so workers at Maruti's Manesar factory have forced a shutdown in the company's production and are spawning problems at other plants. It's a crisis that has thrown Maruti off track when it can least afford it the auto sector is in the midst of a slowdown. The crisis has put several jobs on the line and changed the perception of a firm once regarded as a model of good industrial relations into just another strike-affected company.