The tool-down strike by 1,600 workers at Mahindra & Mahindra’s Igatpuri plant over the suspension of union leader Sunil Yadav entered its sixth day on Sunday.
“Bhartiya Kamgar Sena leader Suryakant Mahadik is arriving at Igatpuri on Monday and will hold talks with the management. We hope that the management and our leader reach a consensus,” Mr Yadav told The Asian Age.
On April 2, after a disagreement between the employees and the management, Sunil Yadav was suspended. Subsequently, workers protested management’s move and began the tool-down strike on April 8. The M&M plant has around 1,600 workers including contract labourers. A tool-down strike is one in which workers enter the factory according to their shifts but do not pick up tools and carry out their tasks.
The facility manufactures engines for models like Scorpio, Bolero, Xylo, Genio and Maximo at the Igatpuri plant. The engines, however, are fitted at Kandivili, Chakan, Haridwar, Faridabad and Nashik plants. With the key plant being affected, all other units depending on engines from this plant, have consequently been affected.
The M&M management, on the other hand, has repeatedly said that they are willing to hold talks with the union leaders to reach an agreement and end strike. A wage agreement between the management and workers is also due, sources said.
In addition to this, M&M Nashik plant union’s deadline for new wage settlement agreement concludes on April 15, union general secretary Pravin Shinde said.
The management had suspended union leader Pravin Shinde and union vice president Amol Sonawane on March 2 and workers had resorted to a tool-down agitation that concluded on March 7. After talks with the management, the union had cancelled their proposed strike from March 11 on the condition that the management would agree to commit the wage settlement agreement by April 15.