The sudden closure of a garment unit forced 500 garment workers, mostly women, to go on a strike in the Avadi area, which is located in the Tiruvallur district of Chennai.
While the outdoor demonstration was stopped by the police, the workers opted to stage a protest inside the premises of the factory, expressing that they should have been given a three months-notice, prior to the sudden closure. However, the company mentioned already telling the workers that they will close their Avadi facility on 7th June.
The garment unit also added that they gave a choice to workers to get transferred to their MEPZ facility or take the option of resigning. The transfer didn’t come across as a feasible option for the workers, who mostly live in the northwestern suburbs and find it a problem to commute to the MEPZ facility. Speaking about the issue, they stated that it takes them approximately one hour to reach Avadi and MEPZ would take them almost two hours. They also mentioned that management is aware of their commute problem but instead largely wants them to resign.
Further, the workers also demand three months’ settlement money but the company has refused to address this request.
