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Samsung is Willing for Pay Settlement with Wokers, but Rejects Talks with Third Parties

By Consultants Review Team Saturday, 28 September 2024

Samsung India is willing to reach a loterm salary settlement and talk directly with its employees for an amicable conclusion of the conflict, according to the company's counsel, who called the ongoing employees' strike at the Sriperumbudur plant "illegal".

Anand Gopalan, the lawyer for Samsung India in the High Court of Madras and the Kanchipuram District Court, stated that the corporation will only engage with its employees and not with third-party leaders.

According to insiders, one of the significant impediments in the talks is that Samsung India Workers' Union (SIWU) president E Muthukumar is a seasoned trade union leader from the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (Citu) rather than a business employee.

"The management has expressed a willingness to sign a loterm salary deal with the employees. However, Samsung India management would only talk with our employees, not with a third party," Gopalan stated as the walkout entered its 19th day.

Samsung India management has indicated that it is willing to meet with employees in the presence of labor department officials. "I'd like to inform you that the current strike is illegal because the conciliation process for the workers' demands is underway. The workers' union remains unregistered to this day. In such circumstances, the management of Samsung India is right in taking necessary measures against the striking workers," Gopalan added.

The management has been patient and is eager to negotiate directly with the employees, he added, adding that Samsung follows all Indian laws and regulations. "Workers at Samsung’s factory in Tamil Nadu get all statutory benefits and their wages are far higher than what is prescribed by the government for the electronics industry," he claimed.

"On behalf of Samsung India management, I am requesting the workers to call off the illegal strike, return to work, and come forward for negotiations with the objective of resolving all the differences in an amicable manner at the earliest,"he added.

On September 9, over 1,500 workers went on strike at the South Korean group's plant on the outskirts of Chennai, demanding greater wages, union registration, and improved facilities, among other things.

 

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