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Thursday, March 20, 2014
VOL. 13 ISSUE 9
‘Celebrated lecher’ Khushwant Singh dies, aged 99
PAGE 2
Election special: A look at where the Congress stands PAGES 4 & 5
Sadananda Gowda files nomination PAGE 6
Sabotage ‘plot’ sparks plant lockdown The lockout notice outside the factory gate. The laborers protesting outside the factory. ANANNYA SARKAR Over 300 laborers at a spring making plant were locked out by bosses over fears they wanted to blow up machinery. Management at the plant – which makes one million springs a day for the auto industry – then bussed in migrant workers to keep the machines running as the men they had sacked staged an angry protest outside. The new workers are now unable to leave the plant and are effectively locked in. The 330 laborers had been protesting about conditions since March 1 when Stumpp, Schuele and Somappa declared a lock-out on March 6 and brought in laborers from outside the city to replace them. According to the protesting laborers, men from the taluks were brought in immediately to replace them and were being kept inside the factory. Ravikumar, General Secretary of the SSS labor union said, “We came and saw the lock-out notice outside the gates on March 6. It is illegal because we were not given any notice. Also, the company functions are running because they have brought in 150 laborers from Gulbarga, Bijapur and Anantapur who are being paid Rs.400. They have replaced us.” Naresh, Security Head, SSS, said, “The cases were filed so that the management could fire these workers. All the new laborers brought in to replace them are made to live like animals as they are not allowed to go out of the factory until the agitation is over. The management fears that they will be brainwashed. It is doubtful whether they will receive their promised wages.” He added that since he is a permanent employee, he is not allowed to take the side of these striking laborers. The lock-out notice hanging outside the gate reads, “The company will not tolerate the unlawful behavior of the laborers. They have harmed
our expensive machines and have also misbehaved with our female colleagues.” A member of the Board of Directors from the company, who did not wish to be named, said, “We declared the lock-out on grounds of safety. They sabotaged a furnace worth crores which had the potential of blowing up the entire area. We declared the lock-out after consulting our legal advisors.” Commenting on the new laborers being locked in, he said, “These are just allegations. Yes, some laborers have been kept inside for security purposes.” The issue began with the 250 contractual laborers and 80 permanent laborers protesting the poor working conditions and the absence of any privileges. With about 12 plants spread over India and North America, SSS is one of the largest manufacturers of springs for the automobile industry. The company’s Bangalore plants have an annual turnover of over 360 crores and the website says that they produce one million springs every day. N.Yallaraju, Assistant Secretary of the Union, said, “We have the same qualifications as the permanent workers and the staff. We all have a diploma from the Industrial Training Institute. But we get paid Rs.5000 while the others get Rs.15000-20000. The problems began when we asked for our allowances and privileges.” According to Clifton Dezario, a lawyer working with them, the labor law clearly states that all laborers with the same qualification and who do the same kind of work are bound to receive the same pay. Therefore, according to him, the company is clearly flouting the law. The Karnataka Government had passed the law about contrac-
tual laborers receiving two per cent of the salary amount as ‘Service Weightage’ this year. Commenting on this, Yallaraju said, “When we asked for our Service Weightage, the management refused to pay. We then met the Labour Commissioner who asked us to sort it out by mediation. We begged him for his intervention as it is a clear breach of the law but he turned a deaf ear towards us.” Yallaraju added that the laborers had served the management a notice, threatening them with a ‘Tools Down’ strike on March 4 if their demands continued to remain unheard. Sri Parth, Deputy Commissioner, Labor Department, said, “The issue is in the Labor Court now. They will take the final call.” On being asked about the charges of having taken insufficient action, he said, “What do they expect out of us? The issue is quite small. It’s in court. That is all.” The management has maintained that the contractual laborers have to sort out their wage issues with their contractors. But the four companies that have sourced these laborers say that the contract was concluded between the laborers and the management directly. Durga Sources, one of the contractors, on be-
The company functions are running because they have brought in 150 laborers from Gulbarga, Bijapur and Anantapur who are being paid Rs.400. They have replaced us. - Ravikumar, General Secretary of the SSS labor union
ing contacted said, “We do not have any role to play now. This has to be sorted between the management and the laborers.” Dezario, commenting on the situation, said, “Everybody is passing the buck. Nobody is taking any responsibility. It is surprising that the Labor Commissioner refused to intervene and sent cops to protect the factory instead.” Previously, according to Dezario, a number of false cases were also registered against the laborers so that their employment could be terminated. Commenting on the cause behind the agitation by the laborers, the unnamed source from the company’s Board of Directors said, “The workers were instigated by external miscreants. It has been happening all over the city. It is a situation of great industrial unrest in the city.” Bangalore has been in the news for a number of labor strikes lately. Toyota and Bombay Rayon Fashion are the other two companies to have declared a lock-out in recent times. However, according to the Deputy Commissioner of Labor, “There is no need to get worked up. All the cases are in court. Action will be taken in due course.”