SAMSUNG Electronics employees will continue their strike for the fifth day after a meeting on Thursday (Sep 12) between their union, the company’s management and the state government could not reach any settlement, a union leader said.
Tamil Nadu’s labour minister held talks with union representatives and Samsung officials in a bid to resolve a strike which has disrupted the plant.
The talks involved the southern Indian state’s Labour Minister C V Ganesan, Labour Secretary K Veera Raghava Rao, union representatives and Samsung officials.
At the plant in Sriperumbudur, near the industrial city of Chennai, hundreds of workers boycotted work to seek higher wages in one of India’s biggest incidents of industrial unrest in recent years.
“They (Samsung management) asked us to stop striking, but would not recognise the union or talk to us, so the strike continues,” said union leader E Muthukumar.
“The government is sincere to resolve (the strike),” Rao said earlier. Later calls to Rao went unanswered.
BT in your inbox
Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.
Samsung officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Appliances such as televisions, refrigerators and washing machines are made at the plant, and contribute 20 to 30 per cent of Samsung’s annual revenue of US$12 billion in India.
The South Asian nation is a key growth market for the South Korean company, the biggest player in India’s consumer electronics industry.
It was not clear which Samsung representatives attended the meeting. It was reported this week that JB Park, the company’s chief executive for South-west Asia, had visited the state along with senior officials, aiming to resolve the matter.
The workers, who have been sitting in protest in a makeshift tent near the factory, want Samsung to recognise their union, boost wages and cut working hours.
Samsung India actively engaged with workers “to address any grievances they may have and comply with all laws and regulations”, a company spokesperson said on Monday. REUTERS
