Royal Enfield workers resume strike

Chennai: After a gap of three months, the workers at Eicher motor’s Royal Enfield plant at Orgadam near Chennai have resumed their strike. The workers claim that the strike has shrunk the daily productions by half.

The workers’ union had given notice for strike on February 12 for not meeting the demands, including increase in wages and bonus and confirmation of temporary staff. According to R Sampath, vice president, Royal Enfield Employees Union, the management had agreed to meet these demands when they had resumed work three months back.

“After the notice was served, six members of the union were transferred to Eicher’s plants in West Bengal, Bangalore, New Delhi and Rajasthan. Following this, around 600 of the 864 confirmed workers went on strike. There are another 1,000 employees in the unit,’ said Sampath. The workers had a meeting with the deputy labour commissioner on Thursday.

“We have asked to immediately cancel the transfer orders, following which we are ready for talks,’ he said. The strike is expected to continue in the coming days. On February 18, the workers will have another meeting with the deputy labour commissioner.

Meanwhile, the company said it remained “deeply committed, as always in the past”, to maintain respectful relationships with all employees.

“We believe an engaged workforce and cordial industrial relations, create a culture of excellence where all employees are proud of their contributions to the organization,” it said.

The spokesperson said that the company has been working closely with the workforce and has undertaken various constructive and confidence building initiatives.