NEW DELHI: Maruti Suzuki plans to hire more fresh contractual workers at its Manesar plant even as talks with striking workers failed to reach a concrete conclusion.
The company has hired at least 300 new contract workers since Monday in a bid to boost Swift’s production at the Manesar plant.
For new contractual works the company pays Rs 7200 a month as against Rs 17000 a month for the permanent workers. The company has pasted billboards around the Manesar plant at bus stops and other busy junctions inviting contract workers around the belt to join the largest carmaker.
“We plan to hire more contract workers gradually. At the same time, talks are going on with workers to end the strike,” a Maruti Suzuki spokesman said. The carmaker rolled out 
200 cars from Manesar and 1,650 cars from Gurgaon plant on Wednesday.
The company said currently 600 workers were presently working at the Manesar plant. These workers included 200 who had refused to join the striking employees last month. “The rest are a mix of fresh recruits and those who had been hired during September,” the spokesman said.
Trade union leaders and striking workers pointed out that the fresh hiring by Maruti Suzuki is only going to complicate matters as far as ending the strike is concerned.
“This will further create a vicious atmosphere. There are already demands for reinstatement of 1,200 contract workers who have not been taken back,” said DL Sachdev, national secretary, Aituc (all India trade union congress). He added that most of the 1,200 workers had already gone back to their home towns in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh or had looked for alternate sources of employment as they live on strict budgets.
Even as multiple tripartite negotiations have failed to lead to a resolution since Monday, both parties are confident of reaching an end to the stalemate at Manesar before Diwali.
(Financial Chronicle)
