[tortoiseNhare]

Here is the link to the version of the workers union about the incident:

Maruti plant violence: Full statement of workers' union | NDTV.com

I am appalled to see that
1. there was no expression of regret from their side at the loss of a life
2. they had concocted a story exonerating themselves totally

[Hayek]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

We are a barbaric race of dunderheads. Made more so by the highly politicized unions.
This is absolutely ridiculous.
I say privatize MSIL fully and let the workers who are good be retained and the idiots sacked.

Agree fully on the barbaric race of dunderheads point. But Maruti is fully private, majority owned by Suzuki in fact. But Indian labor laws which favour a small labor elite will not allow Maruti or any private company to deal with these thugs they way they deserve to be dealt with. This is the main reason why India does not attract manufacturing investment. Calling for a death penalty for all the leaders of the Maruti union.

[ottocycle]

Originally Posted by tortoiseNhare

Here is the link to the version of the workers union about the incident:

Maruti plant violence: Full statement of workers' union | NDTV.com

I am appalled to see that
1. there was no expression of regret from their side at the loss of a life
2. they had concocted a story exonerating themselves totally

The gates were closed by the security on behest of the management and the bouncers brutally attacked the workers with sharp weapons and arms. They, joined by some of the managerial staff and police later, beat up a number of workers who have had to be hospitalised with serious injuries. The bouncers, who are anti-social elements on hire, also destroyed company property and set fire to a portion of the factory.

Total reverse of what Management has said. And, they are saying that even workers are hospitalized. And if management hired the goons then why did goons attack management staff?
I don't see any other option that shifting the plant to some other place to fully resolve this issue. This is not a place to work. I can not work in an environment where I don't feel safe.

[vikrantj]

Well one part of the story might be that this is the result of MSIL craze to keep cost low. This means apart for omissions of features and likes in their models (which has been discussed at length in various topics and forum here), the workers salary , wages and employment status also takes a hit. I know this is a common trend in all car manufacturing units but other car companies have not seen situation going down to this extent. This means something is wrong with the basics of this company's philosophy and work culture.

Company policies and management is reflected in the satisfaction of their workforce.

[sgiitk]

I beg to disagree. Union violence is becoming a way of life in Haryana most probably abetted by the politicians.

The perpetrators and their mentors must be caught, sentenced and executed as soon as possible. Unfortunately, we do not allow public executions.

Violence cannot be condoned in any way.

[hrman]

OMG!!! Its a very very sad day. First it was Roy George the VP HR from Pricol in Coimbatore a few years back and now Awanish Dev -GM HR from Maruti.
Im finding it difficult to believe that another HR leader lost his life to worker led Mob violence in a factory.
Its about time to finally decide to shift the factory out of the Manesar premises to another state.The workers need to realise if there is no factory, there is no salary, how will their houses run and what will their families eat??

Violence in any form is not acceptable at all. All the mob workers deserve to be locked up for life without trial.
Its a very sorry state of affairs. Reminiscent of the 70s-80s powerful Bombay trade unions with some illustrious names, which effectively ensured that the Mill workers lost their livelihood and all factories moved to Surat.

This time around also looks like its going to be advantage Gujarat.

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by ottocycle

I don't see any other option that shifting the plant to some other place to fully resolve this issue.

Originally Posted by vikrantj

Well one part of the story might be that this is the result of MSIL craze to keep cost low. This means apart for omissions of features and likes in their models (which has been discussed at length in various topics and forum here), the workers salary , wages and employment status also takes a hit.

Is Maruti being run like a dignified sweatshop, perhaps? Shifting to another location will be fine for the short term. But unless there is a change in policy, this problem may rear it's head there also after a while. Unless the workers' standard of living improves and they feel they also have a stake in the company. As someone mentioned earlier, there should be a feeling of "we" instead of "us Vs them".

[ottocycle]

Originally Posted by Gansan

Is Maruti being run like a dignified sweatshop, perhaps? Shifting to another location will be fine for the short term. But unless there is a change in policy, this problem may rear it's head there also after a while. Unless the workers' standard of living improves and they feel they also have a stake in the company. As someone mentioned earlier, there should be a feeling of "we" instead of "us Vs them".

Agreed. But this incident IMHO has created the differences beyond repair. It will be miracle if workers and labors here will collaborate friendly and safely at this place. Even if shifting the plant in short term is a huge investment but in long term it will prove beneficial and more peace to the mind.

I am highly doubtful about the work commitment of the workers here, more in terms on compromising the quality of Car being manufactured.

Btw, read in economic times.
After Tata Nano, Narendra Modi to convince Suzuki bosses to shift Maruti operations to Gujarat - The Economic Times

[kpzen]

Originally Posted by hrman

The workers need to realise if there is no factory, there is no salary, how will their houses run and what will their families eat??
.

EXACTLY !!
And, a company of this stature, which operates with more than 1000 vendors, the impact of this event is gonna be HUGE.

[sridhar-v]

Originally Posted by vikrantj

Well one part of the story might be that this is the result of MSIL craze to keep cost low. This means apart for omissions of features and likes in their models (which has been discussed at length in various topics and forum here), the workers salary , wages and employment status also takes a hit. I know this is a common trend in all car manufacturing units but other car companies have not seen situation going down to this extent. This means something is wrong with the basics of this company's philosophy and work culture.

Company policies and management is reflected in the satisfaction of their workforce.

Actually it is part of the larger malaise affecting the Auto Industry. Cars are a comodity as far as technology is concerned. The Indian craze for cheaper & cheaper prices with better features means that the Vendors & Workers are being squeezed to the bone. I had 6 engineers working for me - the costing pressures ensured that I have only one left and am just pulling along.
As a designer of Toolings & SPMs for this industry I am experiencing the costing pressures of the industry first hand. There are many requests for SPMs where the tac time for loading & unloading is now coming down to 8-10 seconds, but the buyer does not want to pay for automating this operation & plans on having unskilled labour do the job. Then he also does not want to invest in foolproofing techniques to ensure quality. As a result the overworked unskilled labourer is held responsible for quality problems not entirely of his own doing. Add to that he is also underpaid vis a vis his counteparts in other "Sunrise Sectors". Fo eg. a sweeper in a mall gets double the wages that a semiskilled factory worker gets. I am talking of factory workers who are contract labourers - and almost all of them are so now. Also the permanent worker working alongside him on the same line gets many times his salary & benefits while he is kicked about every 6 months. So there is a lot of pent up frustation & it is bound to well up. Add to that the fact that japanese management is particularly boorish & arrogant. They are used to the servile attitude of their people in Japan & do not adjust properly to conditions in India where the Social situation is vastly different.

So more of these problems will surface. Pune had one such wave in the mid 1980s. Subsequent trajectory was peaceful. Currently the newer boys just abandon this industry as there are lot of oppurtunities in other sectors. In the face of this labour shortage the Auto Majors here are still trying to push down labour costs by squeezing rates and are increasingly finding it difficult to attract quality supplies.
And the irony is that they are substantially overpaying their Middle Management & Top Management. Majaority of these guys are useless boot lickers who are very good at holding meetings & giving PPT presentations.

Anyways be prepared eventually for some steep price hikes if you want to maintain quality.

[SkyWalker]

IMHO, Maruti should swiftly to move its base out, probably Gujrat or Chennai where things are going smoother and Govt actually cooperates. They should also take strict legal measures against the psychopaths who did this. None of them deserve their jobs or their freedom.

[aditya101]

Shocking account of what transpired at MSIL. Can we trust these workers to deliver us quality cars?

Unanswered questions in Maruti’s Manesar violence | Firstpost

...

It is interesting to note that though the violent clashes on Wednesday (18 July) may not have been triggered by impending wage negotiations, the workers under MSWU have been demanding a five-fold hike! Since a permanent worker takes home about Rs 18,000 a month (including perks), this would mean each worker has demanded close to Rs 90,000 every month in wages!

Maruti officials said that it was a normal practice for workers to inflate their wage demands and then negotiate with much lesser wages. But even then, a semi-literate shop floor worker drawing close to Rs 1 lakh every month is surprising.

...

These officials alleged that when the altercation between the supervisor and one worker remained unresolved, workers rushed to executives’ cars parked outside and quickly extracted what is known as a side-impact beam from the doors of these cars. Though this beam is meant to lessen the impact of a collision in the car, workers – who themselves stand on the shopfloor assembling car doors and are quite familiar with car parts – used it to hit management executives on their heads.

...

GGN-Manesar belt is full of communities who have given up their lands for industry and commercial purposes. No longer farming, they need industrial activity for gainful employment. What if the companies depart? It will be bad news for NCR as it was for Bombay when the textile mills shut down.

It is certain that jittery industrialists will think twice before opening a new plant here. But if existing companies depart then that will be a disaster.

[SwiftSD]

Moving the base to a different location would just be a temporary solution IMO , there was a debate going on last night in one of the news channels discussing the challenges and one major point mentioned was that permanent workers are being paid more that the contract workers for the same work and skillset and the gap is huge. So even if there is a change in base location similar problems would crop in the near future.

It would be difficult to reduce the salary gap in one go but IMHO there would have to be some reforms to solve this issue permanently though some difference would always be there between the workers and management no matter what is done.

SD

[amitayu]

This recent flare up was supposedly triggered by someone from the management making casteist abuses to a worker.
If that is really the case, the maruti management too must be at fault.
Factories have issues and complications at times and that is quite natural. But this maruti manesar plant has been having a series of problems.
Surely, both sides are at fault. While i d onot support the workers for vandalism, i strongly feel there are problems with the management as well.There is an old saying in Bangla, you cannot clap with one hand.

[samarjitdhar]

Originally Posted by apachelongbow

People of states like Haryana or Bengal look at easy ways to make money without effort. Coming to work at 10am leaving at 4pm with 3 chai breaks and need a yearly guranteed bonus and leaves on all major/minor festivals. Oh and plus annual increments. This coupled with corruption and underhand deals to make a quick buck. The respective state government is busy playing to khap panchayats or likewise and not bothered to setup an investor friendly climate.

On top of this voilence at a drop of a hat is a given, especially in Haryana.

It seems all want a China with glittering infrastructure and lifestyle without working for any of it.

Note from the Team-BHP Support Staff : Please refrain from personal attacks on any community that may offend fellow members. All members are part of the Team-BHP family and any discriminating or derogatory comment is uncalled for.

I am a bit surprised that you kinda got away by making a comment bordering on the racist out here. I would like to point out to you that there are enough folks in these states who put in a lot of hard work unhindered by external factors or negative personal traits like laziness, etc as you have stated so nonchalantly. I request you not to bring the discussion quality to such denigrating levels through blind generalizations. As for China let me say one word to you, Foxconn. So let's not get too here.

Upfront let me make it very clear that I do not support any form of violence for any cause so please do not interpret my comments as such. However I want to present a contrary view for which I know I might get flamed here.

There is a news article today that states about only 1/3rd of the employees in Maruti are permanent who receive salaries up to Rs 18K per month. The rest are temps who receive on an average Rs 7000 per month under trying working conditions. Surviving on that amount in NCR? Go figure.

I think the malaise at Maruti is a symptom of our obsessiveness of trying to get something very cheap no matter what the eventual cost. Because we demand goods at incredibly low prices coupled with some weird targets of astronomical productivity we always end up creating scenarios where we tend to push limits of everything to achieve these goals. Be it product quality, safety or worker morale. It's just that beyond a certain point it is impossible to achieve all this without breaking the limits and as a result we see low quality products, manufacturers skimping on safety aspects (the brakes of the new Swift has already been covered) and pushing workers as much as possible beyond human limits. Most of us in this forum have cushy jobs in air conditioned offices and ride the very cars these workers make so its not so easy for any of us to guess in what conditions these workers operate in or how they lead their lives.

I think all these incidents that happen are just because the workers are totally not equipped to handle the stress levels in these factories. I don't think these workers are hardened criminals itching to murder somebody but given their education and social strata in life they need to be handled with a lot of tact and skill. I think of late Maruti has been missing this and hence frequently encountering these issues. I somewhere feel Maruti might need to invest a little more to ensure that overall stress levels in their factories come down. Blaming external factors and crying sabotage is going to do zilch for them. Instead look at what the main problem areas are inside and try fixing them. This would be through probably not trying to run at a breakneck speed trying to always stay number one, spend some more time on quality, improve worker welfare where possible. This is not only applicable for Maruti but all manufacturers who are in this kind of a rat race who are potentially sitting on a tinder box now. All this probably takes a hit on cost, so what. Pass on those costs to the end customer. The customer will benefit from having a better and safer product and pays slightly higher for it. If we customers however always obsess for cheap products blindly I fear we will continue seeing such unfortunate incidents. So QED. Now friends, you can start flaming me .