Thane: Around 700 employees of the Supermax company from Thane protested in front of the Actis office at Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) over the non-payment of salaries for six months. The employees also demanded that the company reconsider the lockout and start production which will benefit them.
On November 25, the Supermax company chief executive officer Kenny Abraham sent a letter to the employees announcing closure of the unit from Dec 5.
Rashtriya Karamchari Sanghatana president and secretary of Balasahebanchi Shiv-Sena, Kiran Pawaskar who is heading the employees union said, “More than 700 workers of Supermax Personal Care Pvt Ltd working in the day as well as night shifts protested on Tuesday demanding wages that are due since July 2022. A claim was filed in the labour court and as per the court order, salaries were to be paid on the 10th of every month.”
Tulsidam Kadam, member of the Rashtriya Karamchari Sanghatana and also an employee of Supermax, said, “Many of our workers are in debt due to non-payment of salaries by the management for the last six months. Due to non-payment of instalments from the salary, they are getting notices from banks. In some cases, the police have accompanied the bank officers to their homes to collect dues.”
According to Kadam, the Bombay High Court held the Dec 5 lockout illegal, ordered the management to pay the workers on time and start the company. However, the management has not been able to start the company to date.
“We have requested the management to supply raw materials to the company and restart production so at least two pending salaries can be cleared by Dec end. The remainder can be paid after the company restarts,” he said, adding that the workers will stage a mass self-immolation protest in front of the Actis office if this demand is not met.
When FPJ contacted Rick Phillips, head of private equity at Actis and direct in-charge of Supermax to know about the status he said, “I would not be commenting on the issue as of now.” Meanwhile, Supermax CEO (Indian subcontinent) Kenny Abraham told FPJ, “For the decision of Actis, please contact Actis.”
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