That’s when, if I were a union leader, I would have called off all efforts to organise BPO employees. But of course CITU leaders are made of sterner stuff. So they will continue. And one of the things they will try to do is to organise a strike that has IT/BPO sector participation. In Bengal, CITU has already said its new union will be part of the December 14 general strike, which would be barely a month after the November 17 formal launch of the Bengal BPO union.

What’s the smartest thing for Oscar Fernandes to do between now and mid-December? Commission a survey that is unimpeachably independent and that asks BPO employees this question: do you want to get unionised? He should feel absolutely confident about the answer. Once the answer carrying the labour ministry’s imprimatur comes, it is hard to see how even the most Stalinist union leader can ignore it. What are they going to say? That 700,000 young, educated Indians are not qualified to speak for themselves?

They may say, though, Oscar Fernandes sabotaged BPO unionisation. Which is when we will all be overwhelmed by the new labour minister.