Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) does not wish to take back any of the workers who were part of the carnage witnessed on July 18 this year, at the Manesar plant. More than 100 were injured and a senior manager was killed during this. Till now, the Haryana Police has been able to charge only around 150 workers.
Commenting on this decision by the leading auto manufacturer, MSIL chairman R C Bhargava said, "It was done after a careful scrutiny. We have eyewitness accounts of our managers and supervisors who were attacked. The company went in for the mass layoffs after accumulating evidence against the workers.” A Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed to look into the details of this attack, but MSIL has its doubts over the findings of this team. The company felt that the violence was not provoked from outside, but was a matter of internal conflict between the workers and the management. Many workers were not named in the sheet that was filed by the SIT. Some of these workers were among those fired, but Maruti refuses to take back any of them. Kuldeep Jhangu, General Secretary of the company’s Gurgaon plant union Maruti Udyog Kamgar Union (MUKU), said that barring those who have been named in the chargesheet, others should be allowed to work. MUKU also talked to Suzuki Chairman Osamu Suzuki, who visited India after this incident, but did not get any assurance on action.
Workers at MSIL feel that the company, in joint collaboration with the Haryana Government, is acting against them, due to the formation of unions and because they questioned the practice of contract worker system, which may be illegal. However, it is quite logical that getting back any of the fired employees may instigate the matter again soon, and it also seems as though adequate actions have not been taken by the SIT to punish all the perpetrators.
