Update on Samsung workers- India

Registration of Samsung Workers in India

After 38 days of protest and 212 days of legal battle, the Tamil Nadu Labour Department registered the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU)-backed Samsung India Workers’ Union (SIWU) on January 27, marking a victory for the labour movement.

The SIWU is India’s first Samsung workers’ union and the world’s second after South Korea’s National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU)

The SIWU applied online for registration on June 26, 2024. Despite meeting membership requirements and other criteria, the union remained unregistered beyond the Act’s 45-day limit.

On September 20, 2024, the union approached the Madras High Court. The workers’ legal battle lengthened as the Labour Department sought repeated extensions.

The High Court gave the Registrar of Trade Unions a six-week deadline on December 5 to decide on the union’s application. N.G.R. Prasad, the workers’ lawyer, argued in court that the Registrar could not indefinitely delay the decision.

SIWU has 1,350 members now. Of the plant’s 1,850 workers, they expect 400 more to join.

The registration strengthened the labour movement, showing workers, they could win their battles and fight exploitative policies through unions.

Suspension of 3 Office bearers of SIWU

After the union's registration, Samsung India suspended three office bearers, stating that it had filed complaints with the relevant authorities against certain employees who had violated company policies. In response, a section of workers initiated a strike on February 6, demanding that the company revoke the suspensions of the three employees. The Tamil Nadu Labour Department convened three consecutive reconciliation meetings.

A.S. Soundararajan, the General Secretary of CITU Tamil Nadu, stated that the talks were unsuccessful because management refused to lift the suspensions of the three workers. "The protests will continue daily," he said.

Samsung, in a statement, said: "A section of our workers is engaged in an illegal strike at the Chennai factory premises, while the majority of our dedicated workers continue to ensure uninterrupted production. We have filed official complaints with the relevant authorities against certain employees who have violated company policy. At Samsung, we comply with all applicable laws."

During the third round of talks on Friday, the SIWU, supported by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), demanded that Samsung India revoke the suspensions. However, the company's management rejected the demand, and the meeting ended without a resolution on February 14, 2025. As a result, the CITU-affiliated Samsung India Workers' Union (SIWU) announced that its members would continue the sit-in strike and escalate protests against the management's stubbornness in the ongoing negotiations.

An SIWU member stated that the company cannot arbitrarily suspend employees. "We are ready for an investigation. If they believe there is an issue, they must issue a show-cause notice, and we will respond. Suspending three office-bearers in this manner is unlawful," the member said.