In March 2013, workers at the Mahindra & Mahindra’s Nashik factory went on a tool-down strike in reaction to the suspension of their union’s General Secretary, Pravin Shinde who had been on hunger strike to press for the renewal of the wage agreement which ended in February. Wage negotiations between union and management lasted for six months. However, despite several rounds of talks, the wage agreement was not renewed.
When the Milk Food Factory Workers Union demanded the reduction of working hours from 16 to 8 hours without loss of pay and job security, management at GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK) Horlicks factory in Nabha adopted discriminatory measures against union members. In April 2013, false charges were filed against trade union members, 300 workers had their wages cut without justification and court injunctions were filed to stop trade union meetings.