Bosch workers call off 16-day strike

B D Narayankar

Press Trust of India

Bangalore, Oct 13: The agitating workers of Bosch today called off their 16-day ''Tool Down'' strike with the protesters claiming that the state government has conceded to their demand of referring the "outsourcing" issue to a Karnataka Industrial Tribunal.
On the other hand, Bosch claimed that the strike was called off by MEA after the government issued prohibitory orders (on the strike). "This was followed by an unconditional letter to end the strike from MEA to us," it said in a statement.
Work will be resumed from October 14, beginning with the first shift of production, Bosch said.
The workers were on strike since September 28 and later decided to go on fast from October 2 protesting the company''s decision to outsource manufacturing of some products.
"We are satisfied with the state government''s decision to refer the outsourcing issue to Karnataka Industrial Tribunal Judge," MICO Employees Association (MEA) President N M Adayanthaya told PTI here.
The tribunal would also adjudicate on the issues of "illegal" shut down of Adugodi plant by Bosch and employees'' loss of pay during the shutdown, he said.
This was the main demand in two rounds of talks with Bosch management and Karnataka Additional Labour Commissioner, Adayanthaya added.
He alleged the company was guilty of violating terms of agreement signed between the management and MEA under the 2009-2012 wage settlement provisions.
"In two rounds of unsuccessful conciliation meetings we had demanded prosecution of the company for "violating" terms of agreement under 2009-2012 wage settlement provisions," he added.
MEA Executive Committee Member Raghavendra contended that the outsourcing issue was dropped from the discussion of 2009-2012 wage settlement.
"The Bosch management looks forward to MEA�s cooperation and participation in such significant decisions that are imperative for Bosch to stay competitive in the market and meet its commitment to valued customers," Bosch said.