Deepali Kalia –
The Madras High Court directed the Tamil Nadu government’s directorate of industrial safety (DIS) to charge an official team with formulating a uniform set of guidelines of production which are to be followed by all the car manufacturers in the state.
Reasons would have to be specified if there was any deviation from the uniform guidelines developed by the official team, the Court stated.
It was ordered by the Court that till the uniform guidelines are laid down, the current arrangement at the Renault-Nissan plant must continue.
In order to maintain sufficient social distancing at the plant, the current arrangement at the Renault-Nissan factory is 3:1 which includes 3 cars on a conveyer belt being handled by one worker.
Even though the Court recognized the fact that the current arrangement has caused a slight fall in the quantum of production, it stated that since the arrangement was arrived at after deliberations between the workmen and the management in the presence of the officials of DIS, it cannot be changed at the unilateral insistence of the management.
The management contended that it has been singled out and the arrangement of 3:1 is not being followed by other automobile manufacturers.
The workmen on the other hand argued that with the current arrangement social distancing rules are being adhered to while working and since only essential production is allowed, it is unreasonable for the management to continue to produce at the same rate citing export orders.
“We are committed to complying with the directives of the Madras High Court, working with the government stakeholders and coordinating with the union to reach an amicable and mutually-agreeable resolution for all. As in the past, we will cooperate with inspections by relevant authorities and stakeholders, and comply with recommendations by the state government based on industry best practices.” Nissan spokesperson stated.
The next hearing on the dispute between the management at Renault-Nissan and the workmen has been listed on June 14th.