By Praveen Paramasivam, Aditya Kalra and Munsif Vengattil
CHENNAI (Reuters) – Samsung Electronics’ Indian unit has sued members of a union that has been on strike for 11 days at its only home appliances factory in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, a move that has heightened tensions with workers, court documents show.
Samsung’s Sept. 12 lawsuit, first reported by Reuters, asks a state district court for an interim injunction to stop the union and its members from agitating, chanting slogans and making speeches in and around the factory near Chennai.
Lawyers gathered at a court near Chennai in Kancheepuram district, where the case was expected to be heard on Thursday.
Hundreds of Samsung workers have been disrupting work since Sept. 9, protesting in a nearby makeshift tent, demanding higher wages and recognition of a union at the factory that contributes about a third of Samsung’s $12 billion in annual sales in India.
Samsung’s protests have cast a shadow over Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plan to attract foreign investors to “Make in India” and triple electronics production to $500 billion in six years.
Samsung’s 14-page, non-public court document says the union’s actions “may disrupt the factory’s operations and prevent willing workers from performing their duties.”
According to Samsung, “such activities are likely to escalate, endangering the smooth operation of the factory and the safety of workers.”
Samsung did not respond to a request for comment. It told Reuters in a statement last week that it had begun talks with workers at the factory “to resolve all issues as quickly as possible.”
The labour unrest is one of the largest strikes in India in recent years.
In its lawsuit, Samsung has accused top officials from the influential Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), which has mobilized the company’s workers. Samsung is reluctant to recognize a union backed by a national labor union, and talks with workers and state officials have failed to resolve the issue.
CITU leader E. Muthukumar told Reuters the workers were “lawfully striking” and would challenge Samsung’s claims in court.
Indian police briefly arrested more than 100 protesting workers for planning a march without permission on Monday.
The strike adds to the challenges facing Samsung in India.
Samsung plans to cut up to 30% of its foreign workforce in some divisions, including in India. And India’s antitrust agency has found that Samsung and other smartphone companies colluded with e-commerce giants to launch devices exclusively, in violation of competition laws, Reuters reported.
The Samsung factory employs about 1,800 workers and more than 1,000 of them are on strike. The factory makes appliances such as refrigerators, TVs and washing machines. Another Samsung factory that makes smartphones in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh has not seen any unrest.
(Reporting by Aditya Kalra, Praveen Paramasivam and Munsif Vengattil; Editing by Jason Neely, Barbara Lewis and Sharon Singleton)
