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More workers’ Unions have jumped in to support the ongoing stir by workers at the Bajaj Auto Chakan plant and are threatening a mass stir across the entire industrial belt if the issue is not resolved.
Though the two-wheeler major has moved the labour court asking that the strike, now in its 11th day, be declared illegal, the Shramik Ekta Mahasangh (SEM), an umbrella organisation that claims it has 88 Unions under it, has offered support to the striking workers.
Auto hub
In a letter to Pune Additional Labour Commissioner K.K. Hendre, the Mahasangh has asked the Department to intervene and also said that if the matter is not sorted out, the agitation may spread to other industries in the region. The area is an auto hub and home to several auto majors, in addition to a large auto component industry, and SEM claims it has on board Unions from companies such as General Motors, Mercedes Benz and Tata Yazaki, among others.
According to SEM President Kishore Dhokale, the further course of action will be decided after discussions with the Labour Commissioner and the Maharashtra Labour Minister.
“We are meeting with the Labour Commissioner on Saturday and want to find a solution through dialogue,” Dhokale said, adding that the SEM was supporting the Bajaj Union as several of the issues were common to other industries in the belt.
The bone of contention that sparked the stir at Bajaj Auto is the demand by the Vishwakalyan Kamgar Sanghatana (VKS), the Bajaj Auto workers’ Union, that its 900-odd members be allotted 500 shares each at the discounted price of Re 1 per share. This has been rejected by the company.
Sales Impact
To make up for lost production, the company has shifted production of the Pulsar bike to its plant at Aurangabad, apart from making some bikes at Chakan. According to Bajaj Auto, 1,800 bikes are being produced at the two plants every day.
This is about half the normal daily output at the Chakan facility.
While the impact of the strike had been somewhat limited for the past few days, thanks to an inventory build-up with the dealers, continuation of the stir will soon begin to pinch, especially with the forthcoming festival season, during which bike sales are brisk, an analyst said.
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