Union Power October 2011

The struggle of workers at Maruti Suzuki’s Manesar plant has exposed the blatant complicity of the state in facilitating capital to extract huge profit margins by abuse of contract labour laws, relentlessly exploitative work conditions and above all by the suppression of constitutionally guaranteed freedom of association and democratic right to collective bargaining. The Government of Haryana has allowed the flagrant violation of democratic rights of the workers including the illegal lockout imposed by the Maruti Suzuki management at the Manesar plant while it has rejected the application for registration of the union on flimsy grounds. At this moment, except for few nationwide actions, the trade union movement has shown a lack of shared understanding and effective strategy to make the workers’ struggle at Maruti Suzuki a decisive militant trade union battle to change the orientation of the labour policies of companies and government. In order to move forward and build support for the Maruti Suzuki workers, the trade union movement needs to build coordination both in this industrial belt and at the national level. The struggle of workers of Maruti Suzuki is a part of our common struggle for decent wages and working conditions and basic right to freedom of association and collective bargaining. This struggle requires the development of a movement of the working class that builds militant industrial action within the framework of a struggle against imperialist globalisation.