Chennai: The worrisome downward trend in the auto industry has popped up yet another sad case of work shutdown to stave off further losses. Truck major Ashok Leyland on Thursday declared five dates in September in its Ennore Plant as non-working days, explaining that the painful decision was “due to continuing sluggishness and contraction in the commercial vehicle market” that called for continued corrective actions to safeguard the company’s interests.
Accordingly, sixth, seventh, tenth and eleventh of September have been declared as “non-working days” and ninth would be the “sixth non-working day”-Sept 8 will be a non-working day being Sunday-and wages for those 'non-working days' would be decided after discussion with the employees union, said a statement issued by the company's AGM-ER K Ramesh Kumar. The notice went viral in the social media on Thursday.
He said employees would be paid ‘sixth day compensation’ (SDC) for the non-working of the sixth day on Sept 9, in the same month. Staff not reporting for duty despite being called to work would lose wages for that day, he said, adding that the staff in essential services, who are required to work, would be intimated by their department heads.
Trade union souces at the AL’s Ennore plant said the company produces about 100 heavy vehicles including multi axles there while it makes 100 LMVs at the Hosur unit and 200 LMVs at Pantnagar in Uttarakhand, per day.
