Tailandia - Hicom hits new low in retaliating against union members (2011)

After Hicom Automotive Plastics (Thailand) Co., Ltd. (Hicom) in Rayong Province, a company that manufactures auto parts and plastics, ended a lock-out against its union on 29 January, the company retaliated against members of the Hicom Workers’ Union of Thailand (HWUT) when they returned to work. Hicom removed 50 HWUT members from their regular jobs and ordered them to clean and paint the factory. Another group of 27 HWUT members were removed from their factory jobs and directed to work in an isolated warehouse. On 16 February, the union filed a complaint to contest Hicom’s actions. In an act that the union believes to be connected to the ongoing dispute with the company, a union leader was stabbed in the stomach by an unknown assailant on 26 February while travelling home from work.