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To ramp up production at its troubled Manesar production facility, Maruti Suzuki has turned to its major component suppliers for support. Apart from hiring new employees, the company has asked most of its vendors to supply their own skilled workers to fill positions in sub-assembly and quality-checking roles.
As of today, around 22 workers from the supplier-end, which is 10 per cent of the workforce at the assembly shop, are now working at Maruti's facility, Mr M. M. Singh, Maruti's Managing Executive Officer for Production, told Business Line .
“The basic focus is that they can take care of quality and assembly of the same components that they supply to us. We're taking help of all major suppliers and combined with our own fresh hiring, the production is rising everyday,” he said.
Mr R. C. Bhargava, Maruti Suzuki's Chairman, added, “Even last time in 2001, when the labour strike happened at the Gurgaon plant, we had asked them to supply manpower.”
Additional support
Though at the final car assembly level the carmaker is using only its own trained employees, these new workers are providing additional support in areas where they have experience. While workers from sheet metal vendors are working at the body assembly level, the air-conditioning system supplier has sent workers to help fit the same system at the plant — a job that would have been earlier done by Maruti's own employees.
Major suppliers for the car market leader include JBM Auto, Anand Group, Asahi (Glass) and Subros. “The vendors have been asked to help by sending workers for specific jobs,” said Mr Deepak Chopra, Group CEO, Anand Group, supplier of steering and exhaust systems.
Friday's production
Almost two weeks into the labour strike, the Manesar plant on Friday produced 250 cars — the same as Thursday. The total strength of mostly new hiring at Manesar has crossed 1,000 people (from 940 day before), as 95 more experienced and ITI trained workers were recruited.
Indiscipline
Mr Osamu Suzuki, Chairman of Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan, said Maruti Suzuki management would not accept any indiscipline in the company.
“Indiscipline is not tolerated… not in Japan, not in India. It is never in the interest of any company and its people,” said Suzuki in a meeting with the representatives of Maruti Udyog Kamgar Union, the elected union of the Gurgaon plant.
Production had come to a halt on August 29 after Maruti suspended and dismissed 21 employees on charges of sabotaging and alleged quality issues. It enforced a ‘good conduct bond' on the workers as a condition to enter the factory.
Out of the over 2,000 workers, very few agreed to sign the bond. Manesar plant workers have been demanding recognition of a separate union.
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