VENKATACHARI JAGANNATHAN
Chennai– The talks between the Ford India Pvt Ltd management and the worker representatives on the manner in which the compensation to be paid when the factory near here is closed is on, said senior workers.
“There is a difference of views amongst the workers in the manner in which the compensation amount should be worked out,” a senior worker not wanting to be quoted told IANS.
According to him, the younger workers want the remaining years of service to be the factor in calculating the compensation while the normal practice is to take the completed years of service.
“If completed years of service are taken into account, older workers will get a higher compensation amount as compared to the younger workers. Further the older workers may not be able to find new employment considering their age,” the worker said.
However, the workers who have age on their side, want some sort of parity in the compensation amount paid for loss of jobs.
Workers also said, Ford India management is not taking into account the conveyance allowance in calculating the salary amount for arriving at the compensation.
The management also wants a cap on the compensation paid per worker.
Meanwhile, a section of workers resorted to sit in strike on Monday night demanding proper compensation.
In September 2021, Ford India announced its decision to wind down vehicle assembly in Sanand in Gujarat by the fourth quarter of 2021, and vehicle and engine manufacturing in Chennai by the second quarter of 2022.
Ford India has four plants in the country — vehicle and engine plants in Chennai and Sanand.
Ford’s ‘quit India’ decision will result in an uncertain future for about 5,300 employees — workers and staff, the officials said last year.
The Chennai plant has about 2,700 associates (permanent workers) and about 600 staff.
“In Sanand, the number of workers will be about 2,000,” Sanand workers’ union General Secretary Nayan Kateshiya had told IANS.
Ford India had said more than 500 employees at the Sanand engine plant, which produces engines for export, and about 100 employees supporting parts distribution and customer service, also will continue to support Ford’s business in India.
According to Ford India, about 4,000 employees are expected to be affected by its decision.
The workers at Ford India want the prospective buyer of the car plants to hire them. (IANS)
