AFP – Samsung Electronics workers in southern India were striking yesterday to demand better pay and working hours, with the consumer tech giant promising the industrial action would not impact consumers.
India is the world’s most populous country and its growing middle class is an important growth market for Samsung, a company whose output accounts for nearly a quarter of South Korea’s gross domestic product.
This week’s strike marks the conglomerate’s latest outbreak of employee discontent, with thousands of unionised workers striking in South Korea in July over pay and benefits. Hundreds of Samsung employees went on strike from Monday at a plant outside the southern city of Chennai that employs around 1,800 workers to build televisions, refrigerators and other consumer goods.
“In addition to higher wages and better working hours, we are also demanding that the company recognises our union,” worker representative and union leader E Muthukumar told AFP.
“We have given our demands to the company and are in talks with them.”
Muthukumar said the strike had impacted production at the site.
