In a swift decision taken on Wednesday, workers in Anupparpalayam stainless steel, brass, and copper utensils manufacturing cluster began an indefinite strike expressing displeasure over the stance of unit owners in the wage revision talks.
The decision to strike was announced after an emergency joint meeting organised in the morning by the representatives of the eight trade unions.
“The unit owners are firm on introducing the ‘slab based wage revision’ which increases the wages by a certain per cent every year. We want continuation of the three-year wage agreement clauses being followed from time immemorial that provides wage increase at ‘flat rates’ for the three-year period,” said BMS district vice-president R. Senthil.
The unit owners’ representative B. Manohar clarified that steep increases in wages at flat rates were not possible any more considering many operational challenges faced by the sector.
