The fate of Birla Tyres at Chhanpur here hangs in balance as a tripartite talik involving the workers’ unions, company management and district administration, including the Labour Department, failed to resolve the deadlock.
It may be noted for over four months the production of the plant has come to a grinding halt and it is currently virtually in a shutdown state. The management of the company while maintained that it didn’t have adequate funds to clear the backlog salaries and wanted to run the plant without any preconditions of the unions; the workers demanded that the company must pay them their arrears first.
The meeting chaired by the Sub Collector failed to yield any result as the unions refused to join duty unconditionally. “The management is saying that it is ready to start the plant if workers agree unconditionally. The authorities maintain that the plant incurred huge losses.
But the fact is for the last 18 months the workers have not been paid. The management if can’t give the arrears, it at least should mention when it can be given.
The management says that if workers join the duty unconditionally the plant can run. We have no faith in such promises. They should mention when the arrears would be given.
Since the management doesn’t speak of clearing the backlog we rejected the proposal,” said Arun Swain, a leader of a union adding, “ About 5,000 workers and their families who were depending on the plant are leading a hopeless life as they have no other means of income." In the meanwhile , fear of closing of Birla tyres, a largescale industry, permanently looms large when company says it doesn’t have financial resources and unions demand arrears.