GM India Provides Mass Promotions to Halol Plant Employees

The auto industry has been in the news a lot, thanks to the protests between workers and management. Shedding some positive light on this aspect however is the fact that around 383 workers at the company’s Halol facility in Vadodara, were recently promoted.

A worker at the facility was quoted as saying that the plant employs 900 permanent employees, along with few hundred workers on contract. This year, 383 permanent employees of these were promoted. It was also reported, that the workers who are on contract work mostly in the material handling and house keeping department.

The plant is currently working on producing LCVs by the first fiscal quarter. This move by GM caught many workers by surprise who were anxious about their appraisal. Since October 2010, the workers had been on strike twice, within six months. By this move, however, the company has managed to bring a positive environment back to the plant.

GM India’s VP of corporate affairs, P Balendran, was quoted as saying that in this industry, they are one of the highest payers, and their workers must not have a reason to complain. The second standoff took place as a result of rivalry between unions. Within some days, itself, most workers had resumed their work, with others gradually joining them. It took a total of 51 days for them to realize that GM India was their best bet.

The work at the plant is currently on full swing, as it gets ready to produce new LCVs along with partner SAIC. The company will most likely begin trail production by October. In May, the plant saw record production for their Tavera utility vehicle. Balendran said that they produced around 1,908 models of Tavera in May, a record figure in GM India’s history.

Following the strike in October, they came to an agreement with their workers, and thereafter an agreement on wage settlement for a period of three years that was signed in mid-December last year. Their agreement is as of today, still taking place. At their Halol plant, they have a single recognised union, the GM Employees Union that does have affiliation to any political party.