Toyota says 300 workers return to work after signing undertaking
05 Apr 2014
Toyota Kirloskar on Friday said that around 300 workers have returned to work after signing a good conduct undertaking even as the strike and the subsequent shutdown at its Bangalore plants entered the 18th day today.
The standoff between employees and the management of Toyota Kirloskar Motor's two plants at Bidadi near Bangalore continued with 3,900 of the 4,200 unionised employees still kept out of the plant for want of an undertaking guaranteeing good conduct.
"Around 300 team members have reported back to work after signing good conduct undertaking....," TKM vice chairman and whole time director Shekar Viswanathan said on Friday.
He said the company is insisting on a good conduct undertaking from each of the workers in order to ensure the safety of the existing staff.
''We cannot compromise on the safety of the staff. Even during the last strike, we insisted on a similar undertaking,'' he pointed out.
Workers affiliated to the union, meanwhile, continued their day-and-night fast for the fourth day today.
According to Viswanathan, a total of 2,000 employees consisting of supervisory as well as apprentice workers are currently manning he production lines in both the factories.
This has resulted in the halving of production to 350 units against the daily average production of 700 units, he added.
"We have been working one shift....our production capacity right now is 50 per cent; we used to produce 700 cars a day earlier, now it is about 300 to 350."
He, however, said no contract worker has been deployed to work on the shop floor after the strike.
Toyota declared a shutdown at its two Bangalore plants on 18 March alleging a "grave threat to the safety of its management" amidst a wage dispute between the Japanese company's Indian unit and its 4,500 workers.
