Stop all your shameless anti-labor activities: Japanese Unions tell Suzuki
Mr. SUZUKI Osamu,
Chairman and President of Suzuki Motor Corporation
On behalf of National Railway Motive Power Union of Chiba (Doro-Chiba) and National Coordinating Center of Labor Unions (NCCLU), we send you a letter of protest and request.
First of all, we demand you stop immediately all outrageous and anti-labor actions, such as dismissal, job suspension, lock-out and others, which Maruti Suzuki, your subsidiary, is practicing under your direction against numerous workers whom you employed.
We are informed that your company has made “a remarkable development” as to hold a half of the car market shares in India. Further it is recently reported that you are now planning to construct a new factory to increase your domination over car production and market.
We’d like to ask you who do you think have contributed to all of your recent achievement. Was it possible for you without those workers who have devoted their toil and sweat to the car production even under low wage, long working hours, scarce time to rest and only few holidays?
It is universally established and recognized right for workers to organize their own labor union. Serious and enthusiastic international attention and solidarity of working class is now focused upon Maruti Suzuki Employees Union (MSEU) workers who have risen up for an independent labor union to bring a change to the worst working condition at the forefront of 2 million workers of Gurgaon-Manesar industrial belt.
You must know that workers of the whole world including Japanese workers of course are terribly furious at the outrageous repression of your company on the workers of MSEU, shameless revenge on workers’ protest: numerous dismissals, job suspension, lock-out since the end of August, forceful demand of signing a “good conduct bond” (an attempt of depriving workers of all right of resistance) and replacement of those dissident workers who refused to sign with scabs, or strike breakers, etc.
We strongly urge you to stop all these shameless anti-labor activities and to accept the following demands of MSEU workers:
1) Put an end to lock-out immediately and stop to force workers to sign a “good conduct bond”!
2) Reinstate all dismissed workers and punished workers!
3) Drop all accusation against MSEU workers!
4) Recognize labor rights of irregularly-employed workers and make them all regular employment!
5) Recognize the right of workers to organize themselves in labor union!
6) We heatedly condemn the outrageous arrestment carried out against President, General Secretary and another worker on Sep. 18.
Set these arrested union leaders at liberty, immediately!
Your written answer to these demand are expected to be sent to the following address:
“Doro-Chiba:
DC Kaikan Bldg. 3F, 2-8 Kaname-cho Chuou-ku, Chiba city, Chiba prefecture 260-0017, Japan”
September 22, 2011
National Railway Motive Power Union of Chiba
National Coordinating Center of Labor Unions
Maruti Workers’ Movement: Resisting Exploitation And Defending Democracy
CPIML Liberation
The workers’ struggle at the Maruti Suzuki’s Manesar plant has, once again, exposed the ugly and exploitative underbelly of liberalised ‘growth’. The intrepid struggle of young workers there is a glaring reminder that in the celebrated industrial enclaves of the national capital region, profit margins are extracted by abuse of contract labour laws, relentlessly exploitative work conditions – and above all by the brute suppression of the basic democratic right to organise and unionise. It is bringing home the fact that the Government of Haryana is treating the workers’ legally mandated right to unionise as disruptive; while it is condoning and even defending the flagrantly illegal lockout by the management!
Since the Maruti workers’ strike was defeated in 2000, the management had allowed only a pocket union to function. In the past few years, the automobile industry has chosen to cope with recession by imposing even more exploitative work conditions and even more restricted democracy. This may be the reason why many recent instances of workers’ resistance and severe repression have been witnessed in the automobile sector – at Honda in 2005, at Pricol in 2009, at Rico in 2009 followed by the workers’ strike in Gurgaon, and at Maruti in 2011.
A majority of the Maruti workers are contract workers, most of them skilled – who are paid less than half the salary for the same work, and denied various benefits. This pattern of cutting costs by employing contract labour (in violation of the labour laws) has increasingly become the norm, not only in the private sector but even in the public sector. At the Maruti Manesar struggle, a remarkable feature is the unity between the permanent and contract workers.
Some months back, the workers at Maruti’s Manesar plant had formed an independent union of their own – the MSEU (Maruti Suzuki Employees Union) – to voice their grievances over the severely exploitative work conditions. When the management dismissed and suspended the MSEU leaders in June 2011, the workers went on a strike that lasted 13 days. The strike ended with an understanding that the Haryana Government and Maruti management would recognise the MSEU, take back the dismissed workers, and refrain from further victimisation. Instead, in late August, the MSEU’s application for registration was turned down on technical grounds. On the heels of this rejection, the management swung into action. Workers were told that they could enter the factory premises only if they signed a ‘good conduct bond’ – thereby signing away their right to protest in any form. Scores of workers – all active in the formation of the union – were suspended and dismissed.
Workers refused to sign the ‘good conduct bond’ and began a dharna. Ever since, the gates of the factory have been encircled by hundreds of policemen behind a barricade. The bond itself is absolutely illegal, and the management’s action amounts to an illegal lockout. Yet, the Haryana Government has, throughout, sided with the management against the workers. During negotiations, three top MSEU office bearers were arrested after they refused to relent till all dismissed/suspended workers were taken back. Haryana Labour Minister Shiv Charan Lal Sharma defended the arrest, accusing workers of being ‘adamant’ in their demand that all dismissed and suspended workers be reinstated. The Haryana Labour Commissioner has actually made the indefensible claim that the ‘Good Conduct Bond’ is legal, while echoing the MSI management’s allegation that the MSEU and the workers’ struggle is the handiwork of ‘outside’ elements. Meanwhile, workers in other Maruti factories in the region, as well as workers in the entire Gurgaon-Manesar industrial belt have shown great solidarity with the Maruti workers’ struggle.
The young, skilled workers who are at the frontline of the sustained agitation at the Maruti plant are the emerging face of a new chapter of the working class movement in India. Many of them have strong roots in rural Haryana and western UP. Their struggle is a challenge to the two foremost (and illegal) offensives on workers’ rights by liberalisation and corporate capital – contractualisation of labour and denial of the right to unionise.
The Maruti workers’ movement is not just a trade union struggle. Their struggle for the right to organise, unionise and protest against exploitative conditions is a crucial, and welcome, aspect of the struggle to defend democracy in India today.
CPI (Maoist)’s letter to civil liberties organisations
THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF INDIA (MAOIST)
Bihar-Jharkhand-North Chhattisgarh-UP Territorial Regional Committee
1st September 2011
Red salute to all the members of PUCL, PUDR and all the justice loving intellectuals!
This is to inform you that on 2nd March, 2011, Niyamat Ansari of village Jerua, PO Manika, District Latehar (Jharkhand) was awarded the death penalty as per the regulations/procedure of our lower level committee. As Niyamat Ansari and Bhukhan Singh, were working in close association with Gram Swaraj Sanstha and Jean Dreze, member of the Central Vigilance Committee of NREGA, some intellectuals across the entire state and country have in one voice criticized the CPI (Maoist) party for this incident. Along with this a fact finding team was constituted under the leadership of Jean Dreze in which some of the intellectuals who support our movement were included. Nandlal Singh, Gokhul Basant, Aruna Roy were part of this team. Following this in reaction one of the members of our lower level committee without applying his mind put up posters asking for action against these intellectual friends in our people’s court. Also some words were used in a pamphlet, which were nowhere near correct, as citizens can express their reaction even on any right action of ours. It is their right to express their opposition in response. Even in such a situation our organisation does not believe in taking any such action. Therefore in this matter, with the most heart-felt self- criticism we take back the decree issued by our lower committee members and apologize to all the justice loving intellectuals for these mistakes. Also no action will be taken on Bhukhan Singh for the time being and the lower level committee too has been prohibited from taking any such action.
Now the question is why was Niyamat Ansari awarded the death penalty. On this matter too several facts have been provided by the lower level committee. But nevertheless we have not reached a conclusion, as a team has been constituted to do a fact finding on the above incident. We assure you people that we will do an in depth fact finding in this matter and will try to present the truth behind this incident at the earliest.
With revolutionary greetings.
Spokesperson.
Manas
MSEU: Condemn the arrest of MSEU leaders
Maruti Suzuki Employees Union
18th September
We write this at a time when our movement is under attack from all quarters, and three of our leaders, namely, Sonu Kumar (the President of MSEU), Shiv Kumar (the General Secretary of MSEU) and Ravinder, have been arrested by the police in a completely unjustified and unlawful manner.
All concerned probably know the way in which processes unfolded over the past few weeks. Our leaders went to the negotiation table with the management of Maruti Suzuki and the Labour Department on the 16th of September. Talks were still going on today, when they broke down because the management stubbornly refused to take back those workers that had been thrown out.
We believe that the management, prepared for this eventuality, had already made suitable arrangements with the police and the administration. That the government and its police have been bought over by the company management is absolutely clear. When talks broke down at about 10:15 pm today, the police spared no time in arresting our leaders. The attempt, clearly, is to cripple our movement when we have refused to back down in the face of all threats and enticements.
It is known to us that Ravinder already has an FIR filed against his name; but Sonu Kumar and Shiv Kumar have never been charged before. However, looking at the foul play that the police are already indulging in, we are sure that our leaders will be charged of crimes they never committed.
This way or that, we will continue our struggle. We appeal to all to condemn such acts by this unholy alliance of the police, the government and the company management. We ask you to stand in our support, in the support of our movement, of our arrested leaders and against injustice.
Rishipal
Executive Member
Maruti Suzuki Employees Union (MSEU)
ITI-Polytechnic students extend their support to Maruti Workers
Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS)
All India Revolutionary Youth Organization, Haryana State Committee.
ITI-Polytechnic Students’ Committee,
Munshi Premchand Library, Dharodi, Distt. Jind, Haryana.
Ph. :07206621090
Comrade Sonu Gurjar,
Red Salute,
We, the students of Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and Polytechnic institutes of Haryana, heartily congratulate you for the struggle you have waged against the oppressive, unjust and adamant Maruti Management and extend revolutionary greetings to your struggle. We have been following the struggle you have waged through strike and other means for the legitimate demands for the last four months, are in constant touch with it and getting inspiration from it. We are well aware that we will be joining the factories in one or two years and we will be facing the same oppressive conditions that you are fighting against, whether it is a question of low wages, long working hours, unequal pay for the same work, or the question forming the union. Thus if your struggle attains victory, it will be a victory not only for you but it would a victory for the future of many of the students who are studying in ITI and Polytechnic. We are also aware that the Maruti Management is trying all legitimate-illegitimate means to weaken your struggle. They are enrolling new recruits to continue with the production on the one hand and weaken your struggle on the other.
We assure you that until the Maruti Management agrees to concede on your demands and our struggle is victorious, none of the student will apply for job in Maruti industry and will not allow Maruti Management to hold campus placements in ITI and Polytechnic institutes. If we go and work in Maruti now it will not only be your defeat but our own defeat and it will be a setback to our future.
We, the students of ITI-Polytechnic, once again extend our full support to your struggle and hope that the victory will be ours.
Inquilab Zindabad.
Bahadur,
For Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS),
ITI-Polytechnic Students’ Committee.
MSEU: Appeal for contribution to struggle fund
MARUTI SUZUKI EMPLOYEES UNION,
16th September, 2011
We, the Maruti Suzuki Employees Union (MSEU), as representatives of the workers of Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, IMT Manesar, send this appeal to all concerned for financial help in the struggle fund, at a juncture when our struggle has entered a crucial phase. All workers in the industrial belt of Gurgaon-Manesar-Dharuhera-Bawal and from all across the country and beyond have expressed solidarity with us, and our fellow workers in Suzuki Powertrain India Ltd., Suzuki Castings and Suzuki Motorcycle have especially shown concrete solidarity. We have also received solidarity greetings from all sections of society concerned with the struggle of workers.
We reiterate our demands of the right to organise and unionise, to withdraw all charge-sheets against workers, and revoke the termination and suspension of workers since August 29th, and for the just demands of the contract workers. We condemn the adamant attitude of the Maruti Suzuki management who are using their money and muscle power, coercion and intimidation against workers.
As the struggle continues, we appeal to all to help us by contributing to the struggle fund. You can send your contributions directly to:
Account no. 002101566629
IFSC code: ICIC0000021
SHIV KUMAR
ICICI Bank,
Branch- Gurgaon, Sector-14, Haryana, India.
Please inform us by email at: mseu.manesar@gmail.com so that we could confirm that we received your contribution to the struggle fund.
Struggling greetings,
Sonu Kumar (President) Shiv Kumar (General Secretary) & Sumit Kumar (Treasurer)
Call for Rally at 4pm today (Sep 16) with Maruti workers
NOTE: As the tripartite meeting is still going on between the MSEU, labour department and the Maruti management, the rally for today has been postponed. Further action shall be intimated as the situation develops.- Nayan
The struggle in Maruti Suzuki is at a crucial juncture, as around 4500-5000 workers in three of Suzuki’s plants continued their solidarity with the over 3000 workers of MSIL.
This is on the initiative of the plant-level young workers’ spontaneity and solidarity, whose independent but united might, is holding forth.
Yesterday 15th September, the corporate media, singing the company’s tune, splashed across newspapers that “violence erupted as workers attack supervisors.” It even figured out some arbitrary number, and quoted Maruti Suzuki management saying: “the striking workers have polluted the environment in Manesar. Such actions are damaging for the industrial climate in the Gurgaon-Manesar belt. They will destroy jobs and prosperity in the region.” Behind him, the company logo beams “Count on us”.
But yesterday’s confrontation happened while the company was trying to force three buses with some contract workers inside the plant, under police and management muscle protection. Workers sitting at the factoy gate asked the new contract workers to join in the agitation in solidarity and tried to stop the buses. This led to a confrontation when the management and police attacked workers, 4 of whom were injured, and arrested, one of whom had not been let off till late last night.
Meanwhile the workers in Suzuki Powertrain India Ltd. stopped the finished stock truck to get out of the factory.
There is a call for a rally today 16th September from Kamala Nehru Park in Gurgaon by all trade unions. We appeal to all to strengthen it by participating in it in large numbers.
Nayan
on behalf of
Krantikari Naujawan Sabha
Strike at Suzuki’s Plants: the Struggle Rages on
14th September 2011
The struggle of the workers of Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. (MSIL, Plot 1, Phase 3A), IMT Manesar united as MARUTI SUZUKI EMPLOYEES UNION (MSEU) is spreading like a prairie fire in the Gurgaon-Manesar-Dharuhera-Bawal industries belt, finding crucial support among the workers in the area.
In a significant development, today evening, 14th September, around 3-3.30 pm, when the shift-change happened, workers in three more factories of Suzuki in India, with production chain linkage with Maruti Suzuki, have gone on strike. These are workers in the nearby plants of SUZUKI POWERTRAIN INDIA LTD. and SUZUKI CASTINGS (Plot 1, Phase 3A), where the recently formed SUZUKI EMPLOYEES UNION operates, and workers in SUZUKI MOTORCYCLE INDIA PVT. LTD (Kherki Dhaula, Badshahpur, N.H. 8, Gurgaon-Manesar road).
The workers are on a sit-in strike inside these three factories, completely stopping production. Suzuki Powertrain India Ltd., which manufactures diesel engines and transmissions for supplies to MSIL and has an annual production capacity of 3 lakh units, has around 1250 trainee and permanent and over 600 contract workers; Suzuki Castings, a part of Powertrain, has around 375-400 trainee and permanent and over 500 contract workers, while Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt. Ltd., has around 1200-1400 workers who relentlessly produce around 1,200 motorcycles and scooters a day. All of these around 4500 workers, have gone on strike in solidarity with the struggling workers of Maruti Suzuki in IMT Manesar, and have said that they are determined to continue till the demands of the workers of Maruti Suzuki, organised as MSEU are met.
The workers of Maruti Suzuki, IMT Manesar have been struggling against the conditions of unending days-and-nights of exploitation and repression in the factory, which resulted in the charge-sheet, termination and suspension of 57 workers since Aug 29th. The MSEU is demanding the withdrawal of the charge-sheet, termination and suspension of the 57 workers, their right to organise and unionise and the just demands of the contract workers.
Along with expressing support for the workers of Maruti Suzuki, the workers in the three factories are also vocal about the oppressive conditions in their own factories, and also demand regularisation of the contract workers in their respective factories. The issue of Unionisation and permanent status to contract workers is surfacing as the major issue in the region finding a resonance with the workers struggle in the rest of the country. The significant thing about this strike in the three factories is also the plant-level workers spontaneity and unity rather than the top-down approach of the big central trade unions, who are now slowly coming in support. Concrete support from independent, even factory-level trade unions in the area and beyond is thus a significant development.
The Gurgaon-Manesar-Dharuhera-Bawal is afire with workers struggle as in the wake of the MSEU’s spirited fight. In the nearby auto-parts manufacturing plant of MUNJAL SHOWA, IMT Manesar (Plot No. 26 E & F Sector 3) on 12 September, all of its 1200 contract ‘trainee’ young workers went on strike against its horrible working conditions and arbitrary hire-and-fire policy, where workers were paid a meagre around Rs.4000-4800, even lower than the Haryana minimum wage rate. In the settlement inked last night 13th September, at 12 pm, the management was forced to make 125 workers permanent, and to promise that after completion of 3 years of training, all workers will be made permanent. This is a historic victory of workers in the area who struggle against internal segmentation of labour, and prepare to wage a determined and united struggle against capital.
However, MARUTI SUZUKI is continuing with its adamant stance and spreading misinformation that the production has resumed (while it is not so as the MSEU’s release makes it clear) and that it can go on with recruiting new workers and ‘robots’ if the workers do not sign the ‘good conduct bond’. The biggest automobile manufacturer in India, with a passenger car market of 45%, whose spending on ‘employee cost’ has decreased to a mere 1.9% of its total spending in 2010-11 is increasing contractualisation, even as it builds an empires on the exploited and alienated labour of the workers. It is responding by using ‘bouncers’, state police and administration and corporate media on its payroll, and attacking workers with misinformation, legal (with a willing State in tow) and illegal threats and coercion.
The struggle in the Maruti Suzuki plant in IMT Manesar has found strong support from the strike action in the three factories of Suzuki India today. It is a difficult road ahead still for the workers who are facing the might of the company and state. We as part of the larger solidarity effort and forum in coordination with the Maruti Suzuki Employees Union’s effort, appeal to all concerned to stand in solidarity with the workers’ struggle.
Nayanjyoti
Krantikari Naujawan Sabha
krantikarinaujawansabha@gmail.com
Solidarity Message to Maruti Workers from National Railway Motive Power Union of Chiba (Doro-Chiba), Japan
Dear Brother Shiv Kumar,
General Secretary of Maruti Suzuki Employees’ Union (MSEU)
We of National Railway Motive Power Union of Chiba (Doro-Chiba), Japanese locomotive drivers’ union, send herewith heartfelt greetings of solidarity to you, and express our fierce anger against outrageous attack of Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) on MSEU. And above anything else, we could not suppress a hot surge of anger against Suzuki Motor Corp. (SMC) and its Chairman SUZUKI Osamu who stands behind MSI and commands all ongoing oppressions against MSEU.
Doro-Chiba has been in a long struggle against privatization, casualization and outsourcing, and continue to fight against neo-liberal policies in a state of near collapse. And the March 11th East Japan Huge Earthquake and the subsequent nuclear plant accident have triggered a drastic explosion of the fundamental contradictions of capitalism in the midst of aggravating global economic crisis.
If you’d be interested in our action in Japan against SMC’s Tokyo Office or Shizuoka Headquarters pushing this unforgivable union busting, please let me know an appropriate timing of the action.
End the lockout, and drop the inhuman “good conduct bond”!
Reinstate all the dismissed and suspended workers!
Recognize the right of organization immediately!
In Struggle and Solidarity,
International Labor Solidarity Committee of Doro-Chiba
Secretary Treasurer
YAMAMOTO Hiroyuki (H. Yamamoto)
http://www.doro-chiba.org/english/english.htm
Radical Notes 