Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Pitches For Ford Return To Chennai

The timing must be worrying. After all, chief minister MK Stalin is working hard to convince global companies to set up shops in Tamil Nadu. During his recent visit to the U.S., Stalin set the stage for the return of Ford to Chennai. The Ford plant near Chennai remains closed ever since the American company re-jigged its global operations a few years ago. Deep south in Thoothukudi (Tuticorin), the copper smelter plant of Sterlite moved into the pages of history after the Supreme Court ordered it shut. Read against these backdrops, Stalin has been going the extra mile to woo global investment into the State. Coming as it does at this juncture, the industrial strife at Samsung Electronics situated in the Sriperumbudur corridor along the Chennai-Bengaluru Highway is causing considerable anxiety in the power corridors at St George Fort. The workers of Samsung Electronic have been on strike since September 9, seeking recognition of their new union besides listing out several demands. In the post-liberalization era, the collective bargaining power of the unions is either conspicuous by its absence or compromised consistently. Not surprisingly, the power of the unions has considerably marginalised. So much so, Infosys’s founder Narayana Murthy could even articulate a 70-hour work week to boost India’s economy. The labour impasse at Samsung has two sides to it. Surely, it could have a negative repercussion on State’s effort to entice global investment. Yet, it also gives a clue or two to the increasing stress in industrial relationships due to rapid industrialisation sans human touch.