‘Maruti wanted truce, union said no’

Manesar Hours before attack, officials agreed to revoke worker's suspension next day: Labour dept to Govt

Hours before they were attacked with iron rods at the Manesar plant of Maruti Suzuki India on July 18, officials had agreed to revoke the suspension of a worker against whom action had been taken earlier in the day after an altercation with a supervisor. But representatives of the workers' union — ten of them have been arrested so far in connection with the violence in which a general manager was killed — refused to accept the offer of revoking the suspension the next day and insisted on his immediate reinstatement.

These details form part of the labour department's report to the government on the Manesar violence. The report states that on the evening of July 18 when the union representatives refused to accept the suspension of the worker, Maruti officials, in the presence of labour department officials, agreed to revoke the suspension in writing on July 19.

"Labour inspector and labour officer discussed the issue separately with union members and management and also convened a joint meeting. Management agreed to revoke the suspension in writing on July 19 when Jia Lal, worker, and Sangram Singh, supervisor, would be present and apologise to each other. The offer was turned down by the union representatives," the report states.

Perplexed by the reluctance of union representatives to accept this arrangement, labour officials have written to the Haryana government that they could find no real reason for the violence.

In May, two union representatives were suspended for allegedly obstructing production work. The labour department intervened and the suspension was revoked after three days with the two union representatives tendering an apology.

Maruti Suzuki, meanwhile, has no immediate plans for resuming work at the Manesar plant. "We want stern action against the culprits, they must be punished. Only then will we be able to take a decision on resumption of work," a senior Maruti official said.

... contd.

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