Even as deliberations between Arvind Ltd's management and striking workers at its Naroda plant continue, the latter intensified the stir by adding more numbers to their strength on Thursday.
The total number of workers abstaining from work is now roughly 2,500, thereby impacting Arvind's denim manufacturing operations which went down by 60 per cent.
Having been summoned by Gujarat government's labour department, the company's management and striking workers deliberated on the latter's demand. Demanding a 40 per cent wage hike, from several departments including rope dyeing and spinning have abstained from work since Monday. It needs to be mentioned here that TLA, which represents the textile mill workers, had earlier filed a petition in an industrial court seeking higher wages.
"The company's management, striking workers and members of the Textile Labour Association (TLA) had met the labour commissioner on Thursday. However, the parties have not yet reached to a conclusion and are likely to meet on Friday as well. Yet, more and more workers are joining the stir with each passing day," said a labour department official on condition of anonymity.
An emailed query to Arvind Ltd. did not solicit any response. Till Tuesday, with its plant operations affected partially, the company has been running the same with the efforts of some permanent and contract workers as well as workers from other plants. The plant employs about 3,500 workers.
"We have been assured due diligence from the labour department in following up on our case with the Arvind management. Till then, we will continue our peaceful abstinence from work," said Yashpal Jaiswal, worker activist at Arvind's Naroda plant.
Terming the strike 'illegal', Arvind Ltd had cited that the Textile Labour Association (TLA), which represents textile mill workers, had already filed a petition in the industrial court demanding higher wages. The Naroda plant primarily makes denim fabrics and has annual capacity of 84 million metres out of 108 million metres of total denim capacity of Arvind.
Meanwhile, TLA has also been making efforts to convince the workers to resume work. "We have been trying to convince them to return to work and have assured them our full support in seeking competitive wages," said Amar Barot of Textile Labour Association.
