Govt to ensure no strikes in future: Haryana minister

The labour trouble at Maruti Suzuki's Manesar plant has subsided, Haryana Labour and Employment Minister Shiv Charan Lal Sharma today emphasised on the need for a mechanism to resolve worker grievances at an early stage before they grow into full-blown labour unrest. "We will work on how the problem of a worker in a particular factory can be resolved as and when it emerges so as to prevent full-blown labour unrest in future," Sharma told PTI today.

He asserted that earnest efforts would be made by the Haryana government to ensure that strikes do not take place in any factory in future. "We are planning what more could be done to prevent a workers' strike in any factory in Haryana state," he said.

The statement of the minister assumes significance as frequent strikes at Maruti Suzuki's facilities have threatened to hit industrial activities in the state in a big way. Besides hurting tax revenues, the workers' strike at the Maruti Suzuki plant caused a massive production loss and hit the earnings of auto component vendors during the peak festival season.

Industry experts had even pointed out that a series of strikes at Maruti Suzuki plant could discourage future Japanese investment in the state. Questions were also raised whether Haryana could protect its tag of a 'preferred investment destination', which led to it receiving the highest per capita industrial investment in the country in 2007 as per the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE).

The automobile manufacturing sector is Haryana's primary strength and the presence of Maruti Suzuki, Hero MotoCorp, Honda Motors and Escorts have led to the development of a large number of ancillaries in the state.

MSI's workers went on 13-day strike in the month of June demanding the formation of a new union, the Maruti Suzuki Employees Union. Subsequently, there was another stand-off between MSI's workers and the management in August over the company's demand that the workforce sign a 'Good Conduct Bond'.

The workers went on strike again on October 7, seeking the reinstatement of 44 permanent employees and 1,200 casual workers at the plant. Meanwhile, the minister announced that workers of three plants, Maruti Suzuki, Suzuki Powertrain and Suzuki Motorcycle, have called off their strike after a settlement agreement was signed.