India asks Tamil Nadu state to intervene in Samsung workers strike, government source says

By Shivangi Acharya

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India’s federal labour minister asked the southern state of Tamil Nadu to resolve a weeks-long strike by workers at Samsung Electronics (KS:005930), a government source said on Wednesday.

The protests – the biggest such in India in recent years – at the South Korean group’s plant near Chennai has disrupted operations, with over 1,000 of the 1,800 workers demanding higher wages and union recognition.

In a letter addressed to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, labour minister Mansukh Mandaviya has urged the state government to intervene for an “early and amicable” resolution, the source, who did not want to be named as the document has not been made public, said.

Reuters could not independently verify the contents of the letter.

Samsung and the Tamil Nadu government did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

The labour unrest which began on Sept. 9 is an overhang on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mission to attract foreign investment for manufacturing in the country and to triple electronics production to $500 billion in six years.

The Tamil Nadu plant accounts for about a third of Samsung’s $12 billion annual revenue in India.

The South Korean company has defended its wages, saying its workers at the Tamil Nadu plant are paid almost twice as much as employees in nearby plants belonging to other companies.

Its India HR team has also written an email to some striking workers, warning them of pay being withheld for days they don’t work.