YAMAHA, a Japanese two-wheeler manufacturing plant operating at Oragadam, in Kanchipuram district employs around 2,500 workers including 900 permanent workers.

A majority of permanent workers went on sit-in strike for ten days from October 11-20, demanding recognition of their union as per the legal and labour rules. The ten-day strike ended in a resounding success, with conciliations held in the presence of the additional commissioner of labour and the strike was withdrawn based on the advice given by the labour authorities and the same was accepted by both sides.

In 2018, workers formed a trade union named India Yamaha Labour Union and the same union was registered as per the Trade Unions Act.  As is usually happening elsewhere in the country, the Yamaha management also started various measures to undermine the union and break the unity of the members and started implementing undemocratic and anti-labour activities. The management resorted to various repressive acts and unfair labour practices to threaten the workers including summary dismissal of two workers.

On September 21, 2018, against this act of the management the workers resorted to strike and they demanded reinstatement of the dismissed workers and recognition for the union. The workers fought vehemently for 55 days and a mutual agreement was arrived between the union and the management and both the demands were accepted.

After the struggle, India Yamaha Workers Union which was recognised, had signed a wage agreement with the plant-level executives which was detrimental to the interests of the workers. The agreement was signed by the local-level union leaders who acted as puppets of the management, betraying the members, and surrendering the existing benefits and the rights of the workers. The union leaders signed the wage agreement without the knowledge of the CITU leaders, A Soundararajan, vice presidents E Muthukumar and S Kannan who are also the office bearers of the IYMS. The democratic procedures which are practiced by the union were not followed; a general body was not convened; and workers were not apprised of the outcome of the discussions. Without the approval of the workers, the wage agreement was signed and the majority of workers refused to accept this agreement.

All most all the workers took part in movements demanding the union leaders to hold a general body to elect new office bearers and the executive committee. But the office bearers allying with the management denied holding the general body and they vehemently said they will continue to be in office. But as per the rules, a general body should be held once in a year.

After continuous pressure from the workers, the general body was convened and the existing office bearers appealed the general body to allow them to continue as office bearers for the next term also. But the members who participated in the general body vehemently opposed and demanded for an election. General body elected a committee to conduct election to the office bearers.

The election was announced. Knowing well they would lose if they contest in the elections, the existing office bearers did not contest. Those who contested and won the election and those who won unanimously were announced as office bearers. The management instead of discussing the demands with the newly elected office bearers started its retaliating actions against the workers like withdrawing the bonus amount for the year 2020/2021 which was paid earlier; deducting eight days wages for participating in the all India strike announced by the central trade unions; and denying the exgratia amount for the year 2021-2022. More than 500 workers particularly those who opposed the previous office bearers were served with charge-sheets with various false charges. The members who lost huge amounts of money (around Rs 50,000 each) stood firmly to uphold the right to unionise and other democratic rights.

 Against the management’s anti-labour policies, the workers protested and conducted various programmes like badge-wearing programme, demonstrations, boycott of lunch etc. Previous office bearers appealed the Tamil Nadu Registrar of Trade Unions to examine and declare who have the majority of members. The newly elected office bearers submitted various supporting documents which proved the majority of their union. But to the dismay of the workers, even after eight months, till date the Registrar of Trade Unions did not announce the majority union.

In this background, the management negotiated with the previous office bearers who have no locus standi for a wage agreement. Against this malicious attitude of the management, the union served a strike notice and filed a suit in the civil court pleading to restrain the management to discuss any negotiations including wage pact with the minority group. The court ordered the management not to discuss with the minority group other than the union which was duly elected as per the TU procedures. Then the traitors added Sudhanthra (meaning independent) before the name of our union, the India Yamaha Labour Union and called it as Sudhanthra India Yamaha Labour Union (SIYLU) and filed for TU registration. The Registrar of Trade Unions to our shocking surprise granted registration within three days.  

In Tamil Nadu, the Registrar of Trade Unions usually takes at least six months to register a union. But this deliberate act of the Registrar shows how the Tamil Nadu government supports and succumbs to the pressures of the big international corporations that exploit the labour of the young workers to maximise their profits.

With the support they enjoy with the government, particularly with the labour department, the Yamaha management on October 10, 2022 unilaterally announced that a wage pact was negotiated and signed with the SIYLU. By announcing this agreement, the management trampled on all the democratic mechanisms. The workers got agitated against this wage pact with the traitors and sat on dharna and observed strike inside the factory premises.

With the strong participation of the workers in the strike, the district collector, district superintendent of police, additional commissioner of labour department and deputy commissioner were forced to intervene and hold conciliations with the union and the management representatives.

On October 20, 2022 in front of the labour authorities, the TU leaders and management representatives agreed upon the following.

1. The Department of Labour must first finalise the methodology for determining which of the two unions is the larger union and determine the majority by January 2023.

2. To Refund the money deducted so far including bonuses which have been arbitrarily refused.

3. The suspension of two workers should be revoked without any major punishments.

 4. No action should be initiated against the workers who took part in the strike.

5. No worker should be forced and compelled to sign the wage agreement.

6. To maintain industrial peace and harmony.

The struggle of Yamaha workers shows that the struggle is the only way to achieve victory and to establish trade union democracy. This struggle signals a stern warning to the management and to the government to not pursue anti-trade union practices. This struggle is a lesson to the capitalists that the working class as a class cannot be brought down by their money power.

The struggle was supported by the affiliated unions of CITU who conducted demonstrations including boycott of lunch and dinner. The CITU district committees have conducted demonstrations before the Yamaha showrooms all over Tamil Nadu. The united solidarity actions and the demonstrations by various unions have helped in the success of the strike.