GM Employees in India Start Hunger Strike

Click for more on worker’s rights.

The GM employee’s union in India started “an indefinite relay hunger strike” on 2 October, demanding that the workforce of General Motors’ Talegaon plant be absorbed by Hyundai Motors India as the plant is sold. General Motors Employees Union in India is affiliated to IndustriALL through Shramik Ekta Mahasangh.

“The earlier agreement signed with GM management that ensures job protection of workers must be honored. We have no choice but to protest since the state government has repeatedly ignored our requests to reach an agreement with all the parties involved,” said Kishor Somwanshi, Shramik Ekta Mahasangh president.

General Motors (GM) India has a volatile history of labor relations at the Talegaon plant. In December 2020, GM India stopped producing at the plant, despite the government rejecting an application for closure.

In July 2021, more than 1000 GM workers were illegally laid off after they refused to accept a voluntary separation scheme and meager compensation as a final settlement, unilaterally decided by management.

Several court cases have been filed in this matter by both management and the union. Last September, the Mumbai High Court ruled in favor of the union, dismissing GM India’s petition challenging an earlier court order which held that the retrenchment of workers was unfair labor practice, and directed the company to pay 50% of the salary to 1086 illegally retrenched workers.

This became complicated when Maharashtra state government approved the sale of GM Talegaon plant assets to South Korean car maker, Hyundai. The two companies have signed an Asset Purchase Agreement, but the completion of the acquisition is subject to the fulfillment of certain conditions, such as regulatory clearances from various government departments, including a no-objection certification from the workers stating that they have been compensated. Hyundai India has not given any indication about absorbing the current workforce.

The General Motors Employees Union’s has filed a new petition in Mumbai High Court challenging the transfer of General Motor’s Talegaon plant to Hyundai. The court has admitted the plea, and the judgement is pending.

With an unsure future ahead, the union launched the  indefinite relay hunger strike on 2 October. Every day, 20 workers sit on a rotational basis at the entrance of industrial development area where GM plant is located.

AutoInformed on

• GM India Hires Scabs to Break Chevrolet Cruze Plant Strike
• Washington Diddles. India Puts Billions into Securing EV Jobs
• General Motors India to End Manufacturing, Sell Halol Plant