Samsung workers’ strike called off after 37 days

Chennai: Ending the impasse, the 37-day strike by employees of Samsung India plant near here demanding recognition of their union and revision in pay was called off on Tuesday after the Tamil Nadu brokered peace between the management and protesting workers.

Centre for Indian Trade Unions (CITU), which spearheaded the protests that made international headlines, admitted that the talks were held in a “positive” and “conducive” manner but said it will formally announce its decision after consultations with workers.

“We will consult our workers and announce our decision tomorrow. It will be a welcome decision. The workers will resume work the day after we call off the strike,” A Soundararajan of the CITU said.

An official release from the Labour Department said the striking workers would immediately call off their strike and return to work even as it extracted an assurance from Samsung India that workers “will not be victimised” for participating in the strike.

“After returning to work, the workers should cooperate with the management fully and not do any such acts prejudicial to the interest of the management. The management will file a written reply to the charter of demands filed by the workers before the conciliation officer,” the statement added.

However, the statement didn't mention the recognition of the Samsung India Workers Union (SIWU), one of the key demands of the workers.

A source in the know told DH that the government insisted to the workers that it would be prudent for them to wait till the Madras High Court takes a call on the issue with the CITU knocking at the doors of the judiciary, days before it launched the protests on September 9.

“Remaining demands of the workers were met last week. The strike is officially over. We expect the employees to resume work in a day or two. We have also asked Samsung to be sympathetic towards the protesting employees,” the source added.

The breakthrough came after Chief Minister M K Stalin deputed his trusted colleague and PWD Minister E V Velu to join the negotiating team which consisted of Industries Minister T R B Raaja, Labour Minister C V Ganesan, and MSME Minister T M Anbarasan. “Velu’s experience and ability to convince people helped clinch the deal, though the major work was done by the Labour Department,” another source in the know said.

The strike had put the DMK government in a spot after the protest began gaining traction and support from the ruling party's allies like the CPI (M), CPI, and VCK. Things came to a naught after police cracked down on the striking employees by dismantling the protest shed, following which the state government multiplied its efforts to resolve the issue.

The strike also led to a slanging match between supporters of the DMK and CPI (M) on social media, even as criticism mounted on the M K Stalin government for the “political failure” in nipping the protests in the bud. The criticism was that the leadership should have deputed politicians to handle the issue and hold negotiations with employees rather than deputing bureaucrats.

Only after the protest was about to enter a month, Stalin stepped in to defuse the situation by deputing three ministers, who arrived at a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) which came under severe criticism. The government had to publicly appeal to the workers to call off the strike keeping in mind the larger interests of the state.

The MoA signed between the employees and management of Samsung on October 7 announced an interim special incentive equivalent to INR 5,000 per month, effective from October 2024 up to March 2025.

Diversify the cafeteria menu, increase in meal allowances, upgrading break rooms and restrooms in the manufacturing building, installation of canopies between buildings, enhancing the number the vacations that can be availed by the workmen, and launch the "MD's People First Promise” were some of the salient features of the MoA.

The development comes at a time the Tamil Nadu government is bullish on attracting investments in several sectors, especially electronics. Global technology giant Cisco launched production from the Flex factory last week, while Jabil is setting up a plant in Tiruchirapalli. Moreover, Tamil Nadu is home to key Apple Inc suppliers like Foxconn, Pegatron, and Tata Electronics.