After nearly a year of the month-long workers' strike at its Nano factory, Tata Motors is yet again faced with discontent among its permanent workers at its Sanand facility near Ahmedabad. The company has failed to keep an active engagement with the workers and address their concerns relating to various aspects, allege the workers' leaders. The company, on the other hand, has agreed to discuss the reasonable demands of the workers with openness.
On Wednesday, leaders from the year-old workers' union, Bharatiya Kamdaar Ekta Manch, held their second meeting with the deputy labour commissioner, Ahmedabad, seeking intervention to strike a dialogue with the company management and get their demands addressed.
"This was our second meeting after March 3 in the presence of the deputy labour commissioner and now the company has agreed to hold a continuous dialogue with us and arrive at an amicable solution. The company has not given any time-line for it, but we believe that they will resolve the issues before the next meeting with the Labour Commissioner, which is scheduled for March 29," said Hitesh Rabari, union leader. The union has 500 registered permanent workers in the Nano factory.
The workers' primary demand is a wage revision, which was last done in 2015. The workers were assured that the issue of wage revision would be resolved post the month-long strike in 2016.
A Tata Motors spokesperson stated, "Tata Motors attended today’s conciliation meeting called by the Conciliation Officer as agreed in the previous meeting with labour authorities on March 2, 2017 and submitted its response in the matter. In our response we have reiterated our openness to discuss a reasonable charter of demands amicably and in a fair manner with the union. We are hopeful that the union would resume discussions with the company with the same positive spirit to arrive at mutually beneficial grounds. We thank the labour authorities for their support."
Adding to the comments, the spokesperson mentioned, "Tata Motors works with its union as part of collective bargaining towards long-term benefits of both workmen and organisation. The demand made by the union is unreasonable. The company remains engaged in a harmonious discussion with union representatives. Instead of continuing a discussion with the management, workmen have approached the labour authorities for conciliation. Tata Motors thanks the Labour authorities for the intervention and will work along with them to arrive at a solution."
Earlier this month, the workers had declined company transport to return home and started walking as a mark of protest. However, later they were apprehended by the police and asked to board the buses. Soon after the incident, the state labour department conducted a conciliation meeting with the two parties.
Last year, several workers had gone on a month-long strike, which was resolved only after company allowed a union to get registered and with the assurance it would look into the workers' grievances relating to wages.
Tata Motors makes two models, Nano and Tiago, at the Sanand facility, which has about 2,000 contractual workers. Production at the plant is progressing on schedule.